Price council hears setback in reservoir talks as flooding, conservancy control arise

Chair said the city met with outside stakeholders to discuss a proposed reservoir memorandum of understanding but ran into a sticking point: representatives from the Carbon Canal conservancy district want control of the district and the funding for a project remains uncertain. "They want control of the conservancy district," Chair said, adding that several local water users had submitted support letters.

Council member (S9) told colleagues he had summarized the city's work on water conservation for a KUER reporter, including the reservoir effort, water-line infrastructure upgrades and the long-term plan to mine canals for water capture. He said the reservoir remains a potential major local source of captured water but acknowledged public skepticism about costs and control.

On flooding, Chair and staff described how releases through the Jensen Floodgate sent water to a canal that then affected downstream neighborhoods. Staff identified a private property and an undersized culvert as a possible choke point and said crews will examine whether clearing or upsizing that culvert could reduce repeated flooding. "That culvert's just undersized," Chair said and asked staff to pull records and evaluate fixes.

Council members and staff emphasized coordination with the Natural Resources Conservation Service and county commissioners who have also heard resident complaints. The discussion included references to Carbon Canal stakeholders' concerns about species protection upstream and competing water uses, matters the city said it would continue negotiating rather than unilaterally changing operations.

Next steps: staff will map the choke point, collect cost estimates for culvert work and return to council with recommendations. No formal vote or contract award was taken at this meeting.