Thornton site looks unlikely for Boxelder storage

WELLINGTON — It now appears unlikely that a site owned by
the city of Thornton will be used for a proposed Eastside Storage Reservoir for
the Boxelder Stormwater Authority flood control project, according to Boxelder
officials.

“Thornton is not wanting to enter into negotiations to sell
their property,” Rex Burns, manager for the Boxelder project, told board
members Aug. 25.

Burns visited with Thornton city officials in late July to
gauge interest in selling all or a portion of a property the city owns just
south of the Colorado State University Agricultural Research, Development and
Education Center on the east side of Interatate 25 at 4616 N.E. Frontage Road.

The Boxelder Stormwater Authority is looking for a site for
a 200-plus-acre flood control storage reservoir that would hold water
temporarily in times of flooding along Boxelder Creek.

The Thornton site was investigated after CSU said it was not
interested in providing a flood storage area on the ARDEC site because of possible
disruptions to farming and ranching operations and research activities.

Andrea Faucett with Ayres Associates, engineering
consultants hired to help the authority construct the flood control system,
said the Thornton site would be a good site if a deal can be worked out.

Faucett said the site would offer “much fewer conflicts and
expensive improvements” for the Eastside Storage Reservoir. The Thornton site
would also allow for a bigger storage area than ARDEC, she noted.

“The more storage we have, the less difficulty we’re going
to have,” Faucett said. “If it works out, we’ve got a viable option to pursue.
If it doesn’t, we’re kind of back to square one.”

Boxelder board chairman Ken Sampley noted that the pursuit
of an appropriate site appeared stalled.

“We don’t have either property that’s itching to make a
deal,” he said. “I think we need to keep talking to both entities.”

Faucett said even if both ARDEC and the Thornton property
don’t pan out, the authority still has other possible sites to investigate.

“There’s eight or nine total sites,” she said. “Let’s hope
we don’t get to all of those.”

The Boxelder Stormwater Authority was created in 2008 under
an intergovernmental agreement between the town of Wellington, city of Fort
Collins and Larimer County.

The authority’s mission is to create a flood control system
along Boxelder Creek to reduce damage from 100-year floods and remove property
currently in the flood zone so it can be developed.

Faucett said she didn’t believe either the ARDEC or the Thornton
property was completely dead as a possible site for the eastside storage
facility.

“The dance has begun,” she said. “We’ll keep pursuing them
until the door gets slammed in our face.”