Project Overview
This core mission of the 63rd Water Treatment Facility Campus Electrical and High Service Pump Station Project is to address aging infrastructure to maintain public health and reliable water supply. The project involves two major aspects:
- Repairs and upgrades to aging power supply and electrical components on the campus and;
- Repairs and upgrades to the aging High Service Pump Station, which is the largest potable water pump station in the city.
Project Background
The City of Boulder owns and operates two potable water treatment facilities that supply water to customers. These are the Betasso Water Treatment Facility (BWTF) rated at 40 million gallons per day (mgd) and the 63rd Water Treatment Facility (63rd WTF) rated at 16 mgd.
Initial construction of the 63rd WTF took place in 1969 to provide critical backup supply during times when BWTF is offline for repairs or emergencies. In addition, the facility is required for use of critical water rights from the western slope of the Colorado Continental Divide. Since the 63rd WTF construction, various expansion and improvement projects have been constructed to maintain service and the ability to meet more stringent regulations.
Overall, the facility has provided high-level service to City water customers but is aging and needs repairs. The focus of this project is twofold:
- Replacing major power supply and electrical components on the campus and to improve their reliability and redundancy, and;
- Repair and replacement (R&R) of the existing treatment process on campus called the high service pump station (HSPS).
The HSPS was built in 1969 and is the sole source of supply to the distribution system from the 63rd WTF. Minor repairs have been implemented over time, but the station is now at its end of useful life. The project also contemplates converting the existing power supply of the station to a lower voltage that is less hazardous and more easily maintained.
Latest Updates
May 2023: Progress is on schedule, and overall 30% complete. The first full-plant outage was successfully completed on schedule March-April 2023. As planned, community members saw no service interruptions. Critical work during the outage period included major piping and structural demolition, major electrical equipment rehabilitation with some new equipment installations and large tanks repair work while they were empty and offline.
Upcoming work through the summer season will progress without plant outages. The projected project finish is summer 2025.
March 2023: Progress is on schedule, and overall 20% complete. The first planned full-plant outage remains planned for March-April 2023. The public will see no service interruptions. Critical work during the outage period includes major piping and structural demolition, major electrical equipment rehabilitation with some new equipment installation and large tanks repair work while they are empty and offline.
The projected project finish remains summer 2025.
Impacts
The public will see no service interruptions. This project was planned, designed, and contracted with a project-specific schedule to prevent impacts to city customers. The vast majority of work will be done in ways that permit the facility to remain in operation. The project schedule includes two primary outage periods of the 63rd facility both of which are off-season, winter-only shutdowns. During these periods and throughout construction all facility outages will be offset by increasing potable water production and delivery through the City’s Betasso Water Treatment Facility.
The cost of planning, engineering design, permitting and construction for the current project is approximately $27M. This project is roughly 10% of the value of the facility overall, which has a 2022 replacement value of approximately $250M.
The station will have a total pumping capacity of 28.5 million gallons per day. That flow rate is capable of filling over 40 Olympic sized swimming pools every day. As of 2022, over a typical year the city consumes an average 16-17 million gallons per day. During hot summer months the City consumes 30-35 million gallons per day.