$1.00
February 25, 2021
ADAMS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
Northglenn-ThorntonSentinel.com
VOLUME 57 | ISSUE 29
Larimer County judge rules against Thornton in water case District court judge sides with Larimer County to reject Thornton’s pipeline BY LIAM ADAMS LADAMS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Thornton’s plan to bring water from the Cache La Poudre river to the city suffered a major setback Feb. 16 when a judge upheld Larimer County, and rejected the city’s plan for a pipeline. Judge Stephen J. Jouard of Larimer County District Court ruled in favor of the Larimer County Board of Commissioners decision to deny the city of Thornton’s application to build a water pipeline in the county, a major blow to the city in its years-long effort to complete the Thornton Water Project by 2025. The ruling forces Thornton to appeal the decision with the Colorado Court of Appeals or submit a new application, creating new problems for the 26-mile stretch of proposed pipeline in Larimer County. Jouard’s decision arrived after three years of back-and-forth conversations between Larimer County and its citizens to determine the least disruptive route for Thornton’s pipeline, which the city has determined is necessary to adequately supply water to residents in the future. “We are certainly disappointed and disagree with elements of the Larimer County District Court’s decision,” said Thornton spokesperson Todd Barnes. “We remain committed to ensuring the people of Thornton get the water they own and after taking sufficient time to review the judge’s decision we will determine our next steps.” Decades ago, Thornton pur-
A 2019 view of Larimer County’s Cache La Poudre. A judge on February 16 ruled in Larimer County’s favor against the City of ThornPHOTO BY STEFAN BRODSKY ton, which owns rights to Cache La Poudre water and was planning to build a pipeline to bring the water south.
chased water from the Water Supply and Storage Company from a reservoir north of Fort Collins. To successfully deliver it to Thornton, the city needs to complete a 75-mile-long pipeline that courses through Larimer and Weld counties. Thornton filed its first application for the stretch in Larimer County on Jan. 5, 2018. The route in the application was one of four viable paths the pipeline could travel. Larimer County staff said the first application met all the criteria, according to the city’s complaint in Larimer County Dis-
trict Court. However, the county planning commission recommended that the the board of commissioners deny the application, which it ultimately did. In subsequent months, the city revised its application several times over, proposing the alternate routes it initially identified. None of the alternative routes involved diverting water down the Poudre River in place of a pipeline, a suggestion the city has vehemently rejected. However, some citizens and county commissioners have endorsed the Poudre River alternative.
Ultimately, the board issued its final rejection of Thornton’s application March 19, 2019 and said the city’s application didn’t meet seven of the 12 criteria required for approval. The board cited Poudre River option as a reason for its denial. The city filed its civil case in Larimer County District Court April 16, 2019. Though Jouard ultimately sided with the county commissioners, he didn’t do so completely. He said three of the criteria the board used to deny the application were SEE WATER P4
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 17 | SPORTS: PAGE 19
‘A POWERFUL JOURNEY’ A church’s story of friendship, family and perseverance
P14