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Northglenn staff warns dry mountain snowpack could push city from voluntary to mandatory water restrictions
Summary
Director of Public Works Sarah Borgers told the City Council Northglenn's primary supply from Stanley Lake is at risk because mountain snowpack and streamflow forecasts are below average; staff would consider declaring stage 2 drought if storage projections fall to roughly 5,000 acre-feet and recommended education-first outreach now.
Director of Public Works Sarah Borgers told the Northglenn City Council on March 16 that the city's primary supply, Stanley Lake, is showing lower-than-normal snowpack and that staff are monitoring indicators that could require mandatory restrictions.
Borgers said Northglenn shares a pipeline with Thornton and relies on a mix of local storage and water-right allocations. "Our maximum is close to 7,000 acre-feet," she said. "If we're at 6,000 acre-feet, that would be a drought stage 1, and 5,000 acre-feet would be a drought stage 2." Borgers added that staff would likely need to decide before June whether the storage projection meets the stage 2 threshold.
That threshold is one of several indicators in the city's Drought Management Plan (adopted 2021). Borgers said the U.S. Drought Monitor readings, NRCS SNOTEL snowpack observations and NOAA seasonal forecasts (showing a higher chance of below-average precipitation and above-average temperatures) have placed the region in an "elevated awareness" position.
Council members pressed staff on timing and consequences. Borgers said staff are preparing a communications package and would favor an education-focused rollout if restrictions are adopted: bilingual FAQs, social posts, a prominent banner on the city website, FAQ cards with QR codes linking to northglenn.org/drought and an April newsletter focused on conservation. She said staff was considering recommending an April 20 special meeting to allow the council to declare a drought stage that, if adopted, could take effect May 1.
On enforcement and customer impact, Borgers described the likely components of a stage 2 response under current code: an odd/even two-day-per-week outdoor-watering schedule, prohibitions on new turf installation, limits on power-washing, restrictions on serving water at restaurants before it is requested and a drought surcharge. "Drought surcharging would come into effect when we declared a drought stage 2," she said, "and once you use 18,000 gallons, every thousand gallons beyond that would have a $2 surcharge."
Borgers said the city will emphasize voluntary conservation while preparing operational changes (park irrigation adjustments, water-use planning, and communications) so it can implement mandatory steps quickly if needed. Council members repeatedly urged clear public messaging and requested that staff clarify how code enforcement would interact with any temporary drought rules.
The council did not take a formal vote; Borgers said staff will return with more concrete recommendations on April 20 or at a special meeting if conditions warrant.
Next step: staff will finalize the outreach materials and bring a recommendation for possible drought-stage action to council in April.
