LaPorte area residents blast Greeley pipeline

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

Greeley water officials got an earful on Sept. 18, when they presented plans for a 60-inch water pipeline to the LaPorte Area Planning Advisory Committee.

The pipeline will eventually connect Greeley's water treatment plant in Bellvue with Greeley water users, a length of about 30 miles. The city is completing the project in sections, and the leg impacting LaPorte is the second-to-last to be tackled.

Greeley recently chose a preferred route for this section of pipe, and several property owners along the route were at LAPAC's meeting to voice everything from concern to outrage. As planned, the section would run from Shields Street, about one-half mile south of U.S. Highway 287, to the treatment plant northwest of Watson Lake.

The pipe would cross the river from north to south at Lion's Park in LaPorte. From that point on, it would follow the Poudre River corridor on the south side of the river.

The next step in the process is a public open house to explain the preferred route and gather public input. The meeting is planned for Oct. 2, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at Cache La Poudre Junior High in LaPorte.

At the LAPAC meeting, landowners were quick to condemn Greeley for the way in which the project has been handled. Rose Brinks called the process "despicable" and "sneaky," in that no landowners were notified until recently.

"They tried not to let anyone know what they're doing," she said, adding that the only way she found out was through a surveyor caught trespassing on the Brinks property. Brinks then notified many of her neighbors along the river corridor.

Dan Moore, Greeley's project manager for the pipeline, said the trespassing was not city-sanctioned, and the surveyor was reprimanded. Furthermore, he said, landowners weren't notified earlier because the preferred route was just recently chosen and exact locations still haven't been determined.

Despite complaints, many at the meeting conceded that what Greeley wants, it will likely get. The city has asked for a "location and extent" review by Larimer County, and with that type of review the county can only make recommendations on a project. Greeley can choose to ignore the county's requests.

Greeley can also use the power of eminent domain to secure an easement if there are unwilling sellers or if the city and landowners can't agree on a price. However, that approach is used only as "the very, very last resort," Moore said.

"A water line is probably going to happen," said LAPAC member Andre Duvall. "It's how and where they put the pipeline that we need to deal with, how best to do it for all concerned."

Brinks said she and her husband, Jim, who are among those most impacted by the preferred route, want to keep options open for their property such as gravel mining and residential development. Brinks claimed that the pipeline would preclude those options, since as planned it would run down the middle of their property. It wouldn't be feasible to mine such a divided parcel, she said, and the result would be economic loss for her family.

Moore said that landowners would be compensated for this type of loss. However, LAPAC member Paul Resseguie argued that he hasn't seen people compensated fairly in similar situations.

Moore said Greeley is willing to look at changes in the route, on the Brinks property and others, to follow property lines more closely instead of running down the middle of a parcel. This could lessen the impact on future gravel mining or development, he said.

Resseguie also stated that the pipeline, regardless of engineering studies that might be done, would impact the flow of subsurface water and cause harm in unforeseen ways. "Try to find some place other than the Poudre River corridor," he recommended.

Moore explained that the city has tried to run the new pipeline next to existing lines whenever possible to minimize the impact on property owners. The city already owns two 27-inch water lines running from Bellvue to Greeley. However, in areas such as LaPorte where development has built up along the city's easements, there is insufficient room within the easements to install a 60-inch pipe, he said. As a second-best option, the city chose undeveloped land for its preferred route.

Defending the route, Moore said it is the most direct, affects the fewest people and has less environmental and land-use impact than other routes. He also said the pipe should be sufficient for Greeley's needs for the next 50 years. Beyond that timeframe, he said, pumps could be installed which would double the capacity of the pipe.

Some at the meeting suggested that Greeley should build a treatment plant closer to the city and run untreated water through the river to the plant, instead of building another pipeline. Moore pointed out that water is much cheaper to treat close to the mouth of the Poudre Canyon, since it is relatively clean at that point. Greeley has piped treated water from its Bellvue plant for 100 years.

LAPAC members, while acknowledging that the LaPorte Area Plan does not offer much guidance when it comes to locating pipelines, nonetheless came up with six statements and recommendations for Greeley to consider. The group wants an intergovernmental agreement that would guarantee third-party monitoring for environmental impacts, a cost analysis that reflects fair compensation to landowners, a review by the county's environmental advisory board and consideration of routes outside the river corridor.

LAPAC also stated that the pipeline project could be in conflict with the community's gravel and agricultural resources, and the group wants Greeley to consider installing a pumping station in the near future to prevent future disruptions in LaPorte.