Colorado Springs officials want to continue their aggressive campaign to overhaul the city’s drainage system, and that will take more money. A lot more.
A drainage channel next to Doherty High School before the city improved it in 2019. Pam Zubeck
Colorado Springs officials want to continue their aggressive campaign to overhaul the cityâs drainage system, and that will take more money. A lot more.
On Feb. 8, two options were outlined for raising existing stormwater fees to fund millions of dollars in projects, largely due to the cityâs settlement of an Environmental Protection Agency lawsuit. That consent decree calls for the city to spend $45 million in the next 15 years to stem flows and reduce pollution of waterways from runoff.
While the city looks to raise stormwater rates by up to 70 percent in the next three years to generate that cash, though, itâs also recrafting development and zoning rules to increase âlot coverageâ in new subdivisions. That means bigger homes with greater impervious surfaces that yield more runoff.