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Subcommittee reviews progress on Prescott City long-term water management plan
Summary
Consultants and city staff presented an updated model and planning framework, discussed scope (Prescott service area), public outreach, and possible future options including direct potable reuse, Big Chino allocations and watershed management; no formal action taken.
Prescott City Council Subcommittee on Water Issues members heard an update April 1 on the city’s long-term water management plan, including an updated water-resources model through 2024, scope clarifications for the city’s service area, and potential supply and demand alternatives for the future.
The presentation was led by Herb Dishlip, a civil engineer and water-resources consultant under contract with the city, who said the study will “be Prescott‑centric” and will build on existing studies, infrastructure models and an updated Assured Water Supply designation submitted to the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR). Dishlip noted the city’s water resources model (WORM) has been updated through 2024 and will be used as the baseline for scenario planning.
Dishlip told the subcommittee the study’s framework will (1) assemble a baseline of current supplies, customers and infrastructure; (2) test future outcomes under a range of growth and climate scenarios; and (3) evaluate alternatives such as expanded recharge, enhanced wastewater treatment including direct potable reuse, importation options tied to the Big Chino Water Ranch, and watershed/forest management. He said the project will separate technical memoranda from summary reports so the public is presented with readable findings while the technical details remain available in appendices.
Subcommittee members pressed for clarity on geographic scope. Leslie Grazer, Public Works water resources project manager, said the plan covers the city’s service area, which extends beyond Prescott city limits into nearby parts of Chino Valley and customers outside the city. Grazer and Dishlip said the study team is tracking the draft 2025 general plan boundary because annexation or a changed planning boundary would affect long‑term demand estimates.
Members raised several issues they want addressed in later deliverables: reviewing system losses (unaccounted‑for water), analyzing peak as well as annual demand (for example, for fire protection), clarifying where potable and nonpotable uses are counted, and refining demand projections for nonresidential uses (hospitals, grocery stores and other support water needs that master‑plan residential models can miss). Council members also requested the study define what the city would consider a “high water user.”
Dishlip said the team will use updated groundwater models tailored for the city, and will incorporate infrastructure planning done by Corolla Associates and groundwater modeling done by Matrix (formerly Southwest Groundwater). He noted the Big Chino Water Ranch allocation exists in the city’s assured water supply but cautioned that importation of groundwater across AMAs is limited by state law and that Prescott’s share of Big Chino is finite.
City staff described public outreach plans tied to project milestones and said staff will organize outreach and bring milestone summaries back to the water subcommittee and, later, the full council. Several subcommittee members said they prefer presentations with time for questions rather than open‑house boards alone. Dishlip and staff said they plan stakeholder workshops at key technical milestones.
No formal council action or vote was taken on the study during the meeting. Staff said they will continue consultant work, update the subcommittee at future milestones, and provide outreach materials and legible maps for the public as the general‑plan and service‑area boundaries are finalized.
