A wildfire-vulnerable neighborhood on Boulder’s western edge moved one step closer to joining the city Tuesday, as Boulder City Council unanimously advanced a proposal to annex 43 acres encompassing 36 homes southwest of Wonderland Lake.
The main goal of the annexation is fire protection. The neighborhood relies on well water, which residents and city officials say doesn’t provide the pressure or volume needed to effectively fight wildfires in an area that has been evacuated multiple times in recent years. Connecting the homes to city water would allow for fire hydrants and other infrastructure improvements designed to improve emergency response.
“This area constitutes a necessary area for the city to protect, if I were in your position,” Carolyn Steffl, an attorney for the Spring Valley Mutual Water Association, the special taxing district that currently manages the area’s water, told city council members on June 18. “A lot of the fires that are going to be approaching from the west are going to approach through this neighborhood first.”
The neighborhood was most recently evacuated during the Goat Trail Fire in April, Steffl said.
City Councilmember Rob Kaplan, who spent 18 years with Boulder Rural Fire-Rescue and whose former fire district included Spring Valley, said connecting the neighborhood to city water would improve wildfire protection not only for residents there but for the broader community.
When he was with the department, Kaplan said firefighters had to link neighborhood hydrants to city hydrants to get the necessary water pressure, a process he said can slow response times during a fast-moving wildfire.
“It’s not timely,” Kaplan said. “The volume and the pressure of water is in itself a huge protection asset to the entire city.”
The annexation process began when 25 property owners in the subdivision petitioned the city for annexation. Annexation terms will now go to a vote among the homeowners and registered electors — residents registered to vote in the neighborhood — in December. Petitioners expect the vote to pass.
“We do have the resident support here,” said Steffl. “Maybe not 100% — it is hard to get 100% of any amount of residents to agree to this. It does involve a very large capital investment by the residents.”
Landowners would be responsible for the costs of public improvements, which the city would collect over 30 years through a local improvement district.
Under the annexation, the neighborhood would see improvements to public infrastructure, including water mains and service lines, as well as roadway upgrades to Cholla Court and Spring Valley Road to improve access for fire department vehicles.
Residents on Cholla Court and Spring Valley Road would split the costs of road improvements. All residents would share the cost of installing the water distribution system, while water main installation and other remaining expenses would be allocated based on property and building square footage.
The city and residents are also hoping to reduce the costs of annexation with a $1 million DOLA Energy/Mineral Impact Assistance Fund grant. The grant is contingent on annexation being complete by Nov. 14, but staff are currently seeking an extension.
Cost estimates for the project are not yet available but will be included in the proposal to create a local improvement district.
