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Council approves IGA with Louisville to swap water deliveries as part of Marshall shares settlement
Summary
The council unanimously approved a five-year intergovernmental agreement with the City of Louisville to swap consumable water deliveries to meet stream-replacement obligations tied to Broomfield’s Marshall shares decree; the IGA caps deliveries and establishes a two-year accounting and payment reconciliation.
The Broomfield City and County Council unanimously approved Resolution 2025-14 authorizing an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the City of Louisville under which each city will lease fully consumable water to the other to help meet court-ordered stream-replacement requirements tied to Broomfield’s recently decreed Marshall shares.
Why this IGA: Broomfield changed 157 Marshall shares in a water-court case to allow municipal uses, which triggered conditions to protect downstream water rights. Louisville, an opposer in that case, wanted assurances that Broomfield could deliver replacement water to an unnamed tributary to Coal Creek that flows through a series of ponds (the Anthem ponds). To settle that concern without trial, the two cities agreed to a limited water-lease arrangement.
Major terms - Each party may deliver up to 150 acre-feet per year to the other to address augmentation/stream-replacement needs; there are monthly limits and an initial five-year term that automatically renews unless terminated. - Water delivered on behalf of the other will be tallied in two-year accounting periods; at the end of the two years, the net-delivery imbalance will be reconciled and the party that received more water will pay the delivering party Broomfield’s reuse rate (currently about $492 per acre-foot). - Deliveries may be suspended if a party cannot provide water due to drought or other declared emergency.
Broomfield officials said the IGA gives the city an additional, reliable tool to meet year-round augmentation obligations laid out in the Marshall decree and avoids the uncertainty and cost of extended litigation. Water utilities director Ken Rutt and water-resources superintendent Mark Lohrey explained that other options exist (releases from Community Ditch or Sienna Reservoir, or future Broomfield Reservoir) but the IGA provides operational flexibility and may generate net revenue in some years if one party uses the swap more than the other.
Anthem ponds and future costs Mark Lohrey said the Anthem ponds that intercept releases flowing toward Coal Creek are city-owned but are not decreed under state water law. The settlement requires Broomfield to resolve the legal status of those ponds by 2030 either by a substitute water-supply plan (a temporary, administrative approach) or by seeking a full decree in water court. Lohrey estimated a substitute water-supply plan could cost roughly $5,000–$10,000 per year initially for legal and engineering support; a full decree process might cost hundreds of thousands (his referenced Marshall-court process cost ~ $1.2 million for the earlier, broader case). Council asked staff to return with timelines and cost estimates for addressing the Anthem ponds.
Council action - Motion to approve Resolution 2025-14 authorizing the IGA with Louisville: moved by Council member Leslie; seconded by Council member Ward. - Vote: unanimous approval by the council.
What’s next: Staff will execute the IGA, begin two-year accounting procedures for deliveries and coordinate with Erie and other downstream stakeholders on any measurement stations required to document deliveries. Staff also said it will pursue either a substitute water-supply plan or a decree for the Anthem ponds by 2030 as required by the settlement terms.
