• This report is for City Council information only and requires no action by City Council.
  
  
• This report is intended to provide City Council with information and updates on work performed on this project since the last report provided on February 14, 2022.
  
  
• Staff will continue to provide regular updates to City Council.

• Of the City's two potable water treatment facilities, Semper Water Treatment Facility (Semper) treats the majority of the City's potable water. Semper was built in the 1960s. Significant components of Semper are aging and are in poor condition. The plant's dated technology is also not capable of treating challenging or catastrophic raw water conditions such as fire in the watershed or algae blooms.

• City Council has asked Staff to evaluate options to rehabilitate Semper on or near its current site.  

• CDM Smith's (CDM) engineering services agreement has been amended to deliver Semper Rehabilitation and Associated Sites Evaluation in the amount of $467,074. This amendment includes evaluating alternatives with the Semper site and into the MSC area.

• Staff is preparing a subsequent amendment to CDM's contract that will include evaluating alternatives to expand Semper into adjacent area sites.  

• Together Staff and CDM will respond to three challenge questions:
  
  

1. What is the least cost to address the greatest number of deficiencies at Semper and what are the risks associated with this approach?
   
   
2. What can be done for a mid-cost replacement water treatment facility on Semper and in/around the Semper site?
   
   
3. What does the comparison between questions 1 and 2 and the new water treatment facility at Westminster Blvd look like?

• The minimum time to complete the response to the challenge questions is about four and a half months.

Staff has amended CDM's contract in response to City Council's direction to carry out the Semper Rehabilitation and Associated Sites Evaluation. Amendment 7 to CDM's contract addresses alternatives to improve Semper on the Semper site and into the MSC area. This amendment will cost $467,074. Amendment 8 will include evaluating adjacent area sites as part of the Semper evaluation. Staff is still working with CDM on the cost of this amendment and will report back to City Council. The minimum time to complete responses to the challenge questions is about four and a half months from the time CDM receives notice to proceed including both Amendment 7 and Amendment 8 work. Per City Code and as directed by City Council, City Manager's Office can authorize work on this project in an amount not to exceed $1,100,000.

The results of Amendment 7 will include a ranked comparison that will evaluate each alternative based on a number of metrics. City Council will have the opportunity to provide input into the weight of each metric through an exercise that will be brought to City Council in April. Staff will be looking for direction to understand the importance of items such as the ability for the plant to treat taste and odor-causing algae and certain reliability factors. With this information, CDM with Staff will put together a ranked comparison of the various alternatives evaluated. The estimated cost of each alternative will be provided alongside the ranked comparison.

In addition to the ranked comparison alternatives evaluation, Staff will also provide benchmark comparisons of existing Front Range water providers' water treatment facilities. This will provide some context for City Council regarding how alternatives compare with neighboring water providers.

Receiving this information about options for addressing the future of the City's aging water Semper Water Treatment Facility advances all of City's Strategic Plan goals: Foster and maintain a beautiful, desirable, safe, and environmentally responsible City; Cultivate a thriving, inclusive, and engaged community through access to opportunity and a resilient and diverse economy; Provide visionary, effective, and collaborative government; and Advance the City's long-term sustainability to provide ongoing excellence in City services and a well-planned community that meets the needs of residents now and in the future. Providing safe, clear, and reliable drinking water at an affordable price to our community is the foundation to achieve all of the City's strategic goals.