Douglas County Water Commission flags water-supply details for Ramblewood, Pinery and Kelty Road referrals

Douglas County Water Commission members discussed three development referrals — Ramblewood, Pinery Meadows and a commercial conversion on Kelty Road — focusing on water availability, well types and policy exceptions. Commissioners asked staff to collect the commission’s comments and forward them to the County Commissioners to inform upcoming decisions.

Commissioner Tricia Bernhardt told the commission the two new developments, Ramblewood and Pinery, “both cumulatively have roughly, almost 200 acre feet that they need per year” and noted that will-serve letters provided by water districts do not specify how much of that supply would come from groundwater versus renewable sources. That distinction, she said, was not included in the materials presented to the commission. The commission’s comments on the two preliminary plans were recorded as input to the County Commissioners rather than a formal vote.

The Kelty Road referral — a change from a mineral/residential use to a coffee shop/restaurant — prompted a separate discussion on exceptions to the county’s central-water requirement. Commissioner Harold said he saw “no reason to grant the exception to the policy,” citing concerns that a commercial activity on a standalone well would increase water use and generate wastewater that cannot be reused. Other commissioners disagreed on the severity of the impact: Bernhardt said the change “is a tiny amount of water compared to all of the other water wells that are around that area” and noted the property has no practical connection to a water district. Commissioner Evan Ela observed the applicant could pursue a state well-permitting path to convert a residential well to an exempt commercial well and said he had “no reason to oppose that either.”

Steve Koster of Planning Services briefed the group on the policy background, noting county zoning historically required central water and sewer in some commercial zones but that many areas rezoned in the 1980s were never served by central systems. Koster described prior county practice of using interim overlay districts and case-by-case exceptions in areas such as Franktown when central service was not available.

The commission did not take formal action on any referral. The chair directed staff to “capture those comments and get them to the commissioners” so the County Commissioners can consider the commission’s views when they take up the referrals. The commission also asked staff to document the types of water (groundwater vs. renewable) identified in will-serve letters when possible.

Less-critical details recorded during the discussion included questions about the county policy’s purpose, whether the policy needs revision or stricter enforcement, and requests for staff to clarify the exception process and how applicants would pursue a change of use through land-use channels.