Douglas County staff outlines how Section 18A governs water adequacy for new development

Douglas County planning staff briefed the county Water Commission on how Section 18A of the zoning resolution is used to judge whether proposed development has an adequate water supply.

Katie Carter, a county planning staff member, told the commission that "The county is a statutory county, so all the land use powers are dictated to us from title 30 of the Colorado revised statutes." She and Steve Koster, assistant director for planning services, outlined the county's approach: a single formal determination of water adequacy is normally made at the preliminary-plan stage, the county divides the unincorporated area into four water-supply zones with different crediting rules for Denver Basin groundwater, and applicants may propose alternate demand standards through an appeal process.

Staff said the four supply zones are (from west to east) the Pike (granite/fracture supplies, not typically reliable for intensive development), Margin A (declining yields; renewable or off-site supplies typically required), Margin B (half-credit for Denver Basin groundwater), and the Central Basin (full credit for Denver Basin aquifers). Steve Koster said staff created presumptive demand standards so reviews are consistent, and that "Section 18a is, like I said, where we've brought all those things together." The county's presumptive residential standard that commission members discussed is 0.75 acre-foot per unit; staff said agricultural and…