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El Paso County public works seeks $16.2 million in one-time funding for stormwater and roads
Summary
Interim Public Works Director Jack Ladley requested $16.2 million in one-time critical needs — including $12 million for road resurfacing and a series of stormwater studies and pond upgrades — citing MS4 permit obligations, recent pipe failures and flood damage as reasons for urgency.
Interim Department of Public Works Director Jack Ladley told the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners that his department needs $16.2 million in one-time funding to address aging stormwater infrastructure and deferred road maintenance.
Ladley outlined five critical requests: $500,000 to upgrade South Academy Pond; $1.5 million for a stormwater conveyance system condition assessment; $1.5 million for a countywide stormwater master plan; $700,000 for a condition assessment of the Windmill Gulch regional detention ponds; and $12 million for road resurfacing and safety improvements. He said the requests are one-time increases to the base budget.
The department’s presentation emphasized regulatory and public-safety drivers. Ladley said sedimentation and upstream erosion are diminishing pond capacity, increasing maintenance costs and raising the risk of flooding and noncompliance with the county’s MS4 (Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System) permit. He described a near-catastrophic pipe degradation discovered adjacent to B Street and a companion failure on Goldfield Road that required an emergency closure.
Ladley summarized operational metrics to justify the investments: the fleet-age target is six years while the current average is seven; fleet readiness is 96% (target 90%); pavement overlay exceeded targets with 77 lane miles versus a 71-mile target; and pavement preservation completed 211 lane miles this year. He also reported the department’s 90-day customer-request completion rate at 60%, short of a 70% goal.
On stormwater planning, Ladley said El Paso County’s last comprehensive stormwater master plan dates to 1984 and highlighted the county’s scale — he cited 13 watersheds, 21 subwatersheds, 145 drainage basins, 11 jurisdictional dams and 185 permanent control measures — as drivers of modeling complexity and cost. He played video of the 2023 floods at Ellicott Bridge to illustrate risk to infrastructure and downstream properties.
Commissioners responded with questions and praise. Commissioner Williams confirmed the requests are one-time increases. Commissioner Van der Woerff said a conveyance assessment would improve grant readiness and referenced pursuit of a $20,500,000 Army Corps of Engineers project authorization that would benefit from the additional data. Vice Chair Brewer and Commissioner Gonzales commended DPW for data-driven management and recent road and safety improvements.
Ladley told the board he expects a roads list for commissioner consideration in early to mid-November and framed the assessments and master plan as foundational work that will allow the county to move from reactive repairs to data-driven preventive projects.
The board called for public comment on the presentation; no one spoke in person or online. The presentation concluded with the critical-needs package on the table for the broader budget discussion that will proceed through the hearing process.
