Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Drought Parks topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Aurora parks department outlines drought response as reservoirs sit at 36%
Summary
Parks staff told the Parks, Recreation and Quality of Life Policy Committee that Aurora’s reservoirs are at about 36% storage and described stepped irrigation reductions, smart-controller conversions and turf-replacement plans to cut municipal water use while prioritizing sports fields and high-use areas.
The Parks, Recreation and Quality of Life Policy Committee heard March 26 that Aurora’s parks will shift operations this year to conserve water after staff reported reservoirs at roughly 36% of storage.
Matt Cresbach, manager of Parks Operations, told the committee the department is working closely with Aurora Water on a tiered drought-response plan that relies on three main strategies: expanded staff training and certifications, conversion of legacy irrigation controllers to WeatherTrack smart, ET‑based control, and targeted turf conversions. “We are currently at 36% total storage in our reservoirs,” Cresbach said, framing the urgency behind the plan.
Why it matters: Parks irrigation accounts for a meaningful portion of municipal water use and is highly visible to residents, Cresbach said. The department argued that more precise controllers, cloud-based monitoring and monthly reporting let staff water to plant need and reduce wasted run‑time. He said the city has 272 controllers planned for conversion and that 86 been swapped since early 2025, speeding the project timeline and enabling better monthly allocation tracking.
Operational changes and safeguards: WeatherTrack’s ET (evapotranspiration) programming, Cresbach said, lets the system schedule run times based on local weather stations and shrink nightly watering windows. The software’s reporting also shows when sites are at or over their allocated gallons. Cresbach acknowledged occasional daytime flow from equipment failures (stuck master or station valves) and said the department will rely on more frequent visual inspections and on-site signage so residents can report issues.
Prioritization and trade-offs: Staff described a valve‑level approach that reduces water to passive landscape and medians while maintaining playability and safety for sports fields. Cresbach said nine properties were over allocation in 2025 (most on the old system) and that the department achieved water use about 36% under its Aurora Water allocation last year through efficiency measures and controller installations.
Council questions and response: Council Member Curtis Gardner asked whether the new meters detect daytime watering and how parks’ watering schedules differ from residential schedules. Cresbach said parks are managed by meter allocations (gallons) rather than by the residential day‑of‑week schedule, and that hydraulic constraints may require watering a park in multiple nights to meet turf needs while staying within allocation limits.
Next steps: The department said it has finalized controller conversions and will focus on point‑of‑connection upgrades (backflows, master valves, hydrometers), expand turf‑to‑low‑water landscapes (particularly medians and nonfunctional turf), and finalize its drought response once Aurora Water completes its citywide plan.
The committee did not take formal action; staff will return with additional implementation details and planned 2026 conversion sites.
