Water Information Partner Spotlight

Q&A with Brian Peckins, Director of Public Works for the City of Cortez

The Water Information Program (WIP) spoke with Brian Peckins, Director of Public Works for the City of Cortez. The City of Cortez is one of the newest WIP partners and we are so grateful for their participation and contribution to the program.

For those who aren’t familiar with the City of Cortez Public Works Department, tell us a bit about the various departments and services that are provided.   

The City of Cortez Public Works Department consists of 38 dedicated employees that serve the City of Cortez in various capacities.  We are located at the City Service Center and provide water treatment and distribution, waterline maintenance, maintenance of 53 miles of streets (seven of which are unpaved), snow and ice removal, street cleaning and traffic services, trash collection, and recycling.  In addition, we have an engineering division and a GIS specialist.  We also operate a 10 MGD (million gallon per day) capacity water treatment plant with three two-million-gallon storage tanks.

Our water source is McPhee Reservoir, which receives water from the Dolores Watershed. We supply drinking water for the City of Cortez, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe (Towaoc), and Montezuma County Water District #1.  We use two separate types of filtration at our water treatment plant (conventional and membrane). The membrane plant addition was completed and put in operation in 2007.

We have three 2MG water storage tanks. All three water tanks have had a complete rehabilitation over the past three years. We have approximately 425,000 lf of water mains in our system. There are approximately 3,725 water meter locations inside the City. Cortez upgraded to a Neptune AMR system in 2015 to read our water meters more efficiently. The AMR system helps to manage the water by having real-time water usage from our service connections, leak detection, and possible backflow events.

 As the Director of Public Works, tell us a bit about yourself and how you got involved with Public Works.  

As Public Works Director, I oversee our $10M budget, lead our team, manage our projects, and advocate for resources to address our capital improvement requirements.

I began this job in February of 2022 after a 40-year career with the Army Corps of Engineers with experience in planning, environmental programs, military construction, and facilities engineering. I served as Public Works Director at several overseas Army installations as well as worked as a Master Planner, Environmental Protection Specialist, and Facility Engineer. While working as Public Works Director for US Army Garrison Humphreys in Korea, I oversaw the largest military transformation since WWII while quadrupling its population, tripling its size, and building 600 new facilities.

Drought Management is a big topic in Colorado, does the City of Cortez have a Drought Management Plan?

Yes, our City Council approved Resolution No. 12, Series 2023, adopting a Drought Management and Mitigation Plan on 13 June 2023.

Water conservation has become an integral part of our mission, and we have established a joint Water Conservation Committee/Drought Management Task Force that meets on a recurring basis. This plan was crafted after reviewing adjacent community plans in the Dolores Water Conservation District, Mancos Water Conservation District, and the City of Durango as well as a previous city draft in order to integrate with the water culture of the area as well as to provide improved resiliency of drinking water supplies for city citizens. The Plan also integrates best management practices as set forth by the Colorado Water Conservation Board to incentivize grey water use and storm water use.

Does the City have any other water projects under way or that you would like to highlight?

• Update our existing 2018 Water Conservation Plan
• Establish and implement a Turf Replacement Program
• Complete a water rate study to ensure that we are charging fair and reasonable rates while making sure we are planning for future requirements
• Rehabilitate the clarifier at the WTP (to be done later this year and in 2024)
• Water distribution line replacements and improvements throughout the City
• Install an expansion tank for pressure regulation in the distribution system

What are the biggest water challenges facing southwest Colorado? 

• Persistent drought conditions. Low water levels in McPhee during drought years
• Educating and informing the public on best water conservation practices
• Failing infrastructure, and finding the resources to maintain and replace water system

What are three aspects of southwest Colorado’s watersheds that you find unique/intriguing?

• Our water supply is mostly based on the winter snowpack
• The high water demand placed on us during irrigation season
• Colorado water law issues

Why does the City of Cortez value water education?

Our slogan is “Water is Our Future.”  It is important for future generations to understand the importance of water and its effect on the community.

What question do you wish we had asked you?  How can we help? 

We are working on an Overarching Water Sustainability Plan that includes water treatment, water storage, water distribution, source protection management, fire management, drought management, water conservation, storm-water management, a turf replacement program, and water education.   We would very much like to obtain grant money to move forward with our plan.  We are hoping to work with other professionals so that we can continue to move forward with our Plan at the Colorado Growing Water Smart Workshop in Grand Junction in October.

More information on the City of Cortez can be “found here”.