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County signs memorandum of understanding with Telluride, Mountain Village on regional wastewater plant; county to hold advisory seat
Summary
San Miguel County approved a memorandum of understanding with Telluride and Mountain Village that lays out principles for a proposed regional wastewater treatment plant and grants the county an advisory, nonvoting seat on a future sewer authority.
San Miguel County commissioners on June 11 approved a memorandum of understanding with the towns of Telluride and Mountain Village and representatives of the Alexander family to outline shared principles for a proposed regional wastewater treatment plant and for the formation of a sewer authority to operate it.
The MOU reflects months of interjurisdictional negotiation. County manager Michael Bordonia and planning staff said the document does not make the county a voting member of any future authority — the county declined that option because it would have required a substantial capital commitment — but it establishes an advisory, nonvoting seat for San Miguel County and directs the towns to consider county interests as they form governance and rate structures.
Key points in the MOU: the parties intend to design the facility to serve incorporated and unincorporated users to the extent feasible; septage and package-plant waste will be accepted, subject to permit and capacity rules; the authority will develop rates through a rate study with attention to affordability for deed-restricted housing and low- or fixed-income customers; and the parties agreed to share draft authority-formation documents with the county in advance for review.
Commissioners emphasized that several MOU provisions are aspirational while others are explicitly binding; county attorneys will continue to monitor progress as the towns draft the sewer-authority IGA. Commissioner discussion noted that differential rates for deed-restricted housing and existing extraterritorial contracts should be considered in the authority’s rate policy and that the MOU language calls for such consideration “to the extent feasible and reasonable.”
County and town officials said the MOU preserves opportunities for public input because the authority’s formation documents will be developed via public meetings and will be shared with county staff in draft form before finalization.
The board voted unanimously to approve the MOU and directed staff to proceed with signing and continued coordination with the towns on the authority-formation documents.
