Agenda Date: 06/02/2026
Subject:
Title
Resolution 38-2026: Approving a temporary construction easement agreement with the City of Englewood for the City Ditch Reach 2A project
Body
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From: |
James L. Becklenberg, City Manager |
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Prepared by: |
Ryan Germeroth, Deputy Director of Public Works & Utilities |
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Presentations: |
Brent Soderlin, Director of Public Works & Utilities |
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Ryan Germeroth, Deputy Director of Public Works & Utilities |
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Sara Dusenberry, Senior Planner Community Development |
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Stephanie Ellis, Engineer III, City of Englewood |
PURPOSE:
To approve the temporary construction easement needed between Littleton and Englewood for the City Ditch piping project in Reach 2A (from Saint Mary’s to Ridge Road).
LONG-TERM OUTCOME(S) SERVED:
Vibrant Community with a Rich Culture; High-Quality Governance
DISCUSSION:
Brief History of City Ditch
City Ditch was one of the first irrigation canals in the state and runs water from the South Platte River to Denver. The 26-mile stretch was initially started in 1861, with the beginning of ditch more closely located to what is downtown Littleton. Due to the Civil War, construction was halted and restarted in 1864. The ditch was completed in 1867, with the start located nearly four miles upstream. Richard Little, founder of Littleton, was responsible for surveying the stretch of land to ensure the water flowed appropriately and noted the original location of the ditch would not be effective in moving water. Construction of the ditch and the ability to move water in a highly arid landscape was a catalyst for much of the development within the region. Richard Little utilized the abandoned ditch to channel water from the Platte, allowing for the construction of the Rough and Ready Mill.
Utilizing gravity to move water requires the use of flumes to move water across features like gulches or side streams. The flumes effectively acted as bridges to allow water to move across these features. The original flumes would have likely been constructed from wood. The use of steel would have come later when shipping the material to the region was easier and more cost effective. A steel flume structure currently exists over Lee Gulch in Littleton and was likely constructed in the 1940s. The structure is currently in use today to provide water to the City of Englewood and other water users, including the City of Littleton.
City Ditch Flume & Project Agreement Overview
Due to feedback from the community during the Englewood design project for City Ditch, including feedback from Historic Littleton, Inc., city staff hired a consultant to assess the condition of the existing flume structures in Slaughterhouse Gulch Park and near Lee Gulch to provide scenarios on what could be done with the flumes. The scenarios analyzed include costs to repair in place to working condition, costs to maintain in place, and the costs to remove and relocate part or most of the flumes to another location. Since the initial assessment was done, staff has since asked the consultant to provide a cost estimate to stabilize the Lee Gulch flume in place structurally with no other work done to it. Based on the condition assessments the flume structure in Lee Gulch is leaking, has corroded steel, has spalled concrete, is missing anchor bolts, and has one foundation exposed. Several of these deficiencies are rated as “high” need in the assessment reports.
For the Englewood City Ditch Piping Project Reach 2A to proceed forward, there are four agreements between Littleton and Englewood that are needed to allow for exchange of funds, to create new easements, relinquish old easements, and transfer property. Reach 2B from Saint Mary’s to Linhart Lake will have a similar set of agreements that will come before at a future date once the stormwater design for Rangeview Gulch is finalized.
The following provides a summary of the key terms and conditions of this agreement.
• Temporary construction easements
o Effective during the construction project only
o Allows temporary access to Littleton property for Englewood to construct City Ditch project
o Includes exhibits showing the easement area(s)
o Requires Englewood project to have insurance as outlined in agreement
o Requires Englewood project to restore surface of easement area back to the same pre-project condition
BACKGROUND:
The City of Englewood is completing the piping of the open channel City Ditch between Linhart Lake and Ridge Road (Reaches 2A and 2B) and intends to pipe the section in the Lee Gulch area starting in the fall of 2026. City Ditch is Englewood’s primary water supply source so piping the ditch will improve the quality, sustainability, resiliency, and safety of the water source. The design effort for this project started in the fall of 2022. Community outreach and coordination was included as a part of the project, including meetings with Historic Littleton, Inc. Due to the potential removal of the flume structures, a request was made by representatives of Historic Littleton, Inc. to consider keeping the flume structures. The City of Littleton then hired a consultant to assess the condition of the flume and provide cost estimates to repair, relocate, and maintain it.
Prior Actions or Discussions
On July 15, 2025, city staff provided an overview of the agreements for Reach 3 of the City Ditch project. This meeting followed two other study session meetings and one meeting with the Historic Preservation Commission. The staff recommendation was to approve all four agreements via resolution. City Council approved all four resolutions. The flume in Slaughterhouse Gulch Park was kept in place as a part of that approval and is currently undergoing stabilization work.
On February 19, 2026, city staff provided an overview of a brief history of the City Ditch, a project overview of the Englewood project, and a summary of the project agreements for Reach 2A to the Historic Preservation Commission. The commission appreciated being consulted at the beginning of the agreement approval process. After discussion, the commission does not want the flume in Lower Ridgewood Park to be removed and would prefer that it remains in place for preservation even though Englewood is not contributing funds for preservation or restoration.
On May 5, 2026, staff from both Littleton and Englewood provided an overview of a brief history of the City Ditch, a project overview of the Englewood project, and a summary of the project agreements for Reach 2A to the Littleton City Council. At the time, the intergovernmental agreement did not include reimbursement funds from the City of Englewood to restore, preserve, or rehabilitate the flume in Lower Ridgewood Park. Due to questions from Council, Englewood has since updated the agreement to include $83,500 worth of funding for reimbursement for Littleton to preserve and historically commemorate the flume. The option still does exist in the agreement for Englewood to remove the flume at their project’s cost.
FISCAL IMPACTS
N/A.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
City staff recommends that Council approve this agreement as presented via resolution.
ALTERNATIVES
N/A
PROPOSED MOTION:
Proposed Motion
I move to approve Resolution 38-2026 approving a temporary construction easement agreement with the City of Englewood for the City Ditch Reach 2A project.