Triview Newsletter – May 2020

Shop Local!

Your local support is needed now more than ever. Many of the Monument retailers and restaurants are open during this time. We encourage you to order online or call them to get a meal, buy a gift or a gift card or replenish supplies for your home. The District receives a 1.5% sales tax share-back from the Town of Monument for retail businesses along Baptist Road and Jackson Creek Parkway. These taxes pay for street maintenance, including street overlays and snow removal, parks and open space maintenance, and the operation of the storm water facilities. A vibrant business community is good for the Triview Metro District and our home values!

Road Repairs Continue, With an End in Sight

Residents continue to tell us that high-quality roads are important to them, so we continue to prioritize that. The good news is that the repair work that is underway, including the asphalt overlay, should be completed by late May/early June, assuming the ever-changing Colorado weather cooperates.

The biggest repairs are on Colorado Central Way from Cattle King Way to the end of Colorado Central Way. Our contractor, Martin Marietta, will perform a “full depth removal” (removing the entire road), making this roadway unusable for three days. The existing asphalt that is removed will be crushed into fine pieces that will then be used as part of the new subbase. We will post signs to keep residents informed as to the exact dates this will be happening. The construction team asked us to remind homeowners, especially children, to stay far back from the equipment. With more people home and an increase in walkers, they want to make sure everyone keeps a safe distance from the machinery.

Please visit our website for regular updates on the road maintenance schedule. You can also find updates on Nextdoor and Facebook/triviewmetro.

New Water Meters Will Give Residents Real-Time Tool to Monitor Usage

Procuring and conserving water is a priority for the Triview Metro District, and one of the best ways to be responsible water stewards is to have good data to track how much water you’re using. To that end, the District will begin making a substantial investment in upgrading water meters in homes this year. Many of the homes in the District are nearing 15-20 years old, and the water metering technology has evolved significantly in that period to offer much more efficiency.

The new meters will allow residents to detect leaks and track excessive water use on an hourly basis, if desired. Also, these meters will give staff the tools they need to help residents understand what issues could be causing excessive water use (a leaking toilet or irrigation valve or excessive outdoor watering, for example). With the tiered water rates, residents who use more than the Tier 1 level of 6,000 gallons per month will pay a premium on their monthly water bill. Therefore, the less water used, the lower your bill. In the end, the goal is to conserve and use this precious resource wisely and arm residents with the information they need to self-monitor usage through an App on their phones.

Due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the installation of the first 600 water meters originally scheduled for this spring has been delayed. If you’re interested in replacing your water meter now, please email us: info@triviewmetro.com.

Following is what you need to know about the water meter change:

• Trained District staff members (two for each home) will replace the meters.
• It will take approximately one hour to change out the meters.
• Homeowners will need to be present because the water meters are located in the basements.
• Homeowners will be able to schedule their appointment, and some evening/weekend hours will be available.
• There is no cost to the homeowners.

Sprucing up the Parks for Summer

The District staff is working hard to make sure our parks and open spaces are ready for what we hope will be a busy summer season. We are putting herbicide on the grass, placing new mulch in the ornamental beds and fertilizing shrubs and perennials. In addition, we are testing the sprinklers so we can replace broken heads and identify any leaks (we then drain them back down below grade until the weather remains warm). If you ever see a broken sprinkler head or water spraying into areas other than the grass, please call or email us to let us know right away.

In the meantime, please respect the caution tape that has been placed around community areas such as the benches, gazebos and playgrounds to ensure social distancing measures and everyone’s safety. The District will remove the tape as soon as it’s legally possible.

Watering Restrictions Begin May 1

With spring in the air and summer right around the corner, we want to remind all homeowners that watering restrictions will begin May 1 and continue through Sept. 30.
Watering is allowed only between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. on your authorized days
Odd-numbered addresses – Watering is allowed on Monday, Wednesday and Friday
Even-numbered addresses – Watering is allowed on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
No watering is allowed on Sundays

Remember to stick to the watering schedule and to not use more water than is necessary. Below is a chart to give you a better idea of the amount of water you should be using.

Flowers, gardens and any new plants may be hand-watered any day of the week between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. Portable lawn sprinkling devices left on for any period of time are not defined as hand watering and are limited to the even and odd address restrictions.

Northern Monument Creek Interceptor Project Update

As we’ve previously shared in this newsletter, the District has joined other local communities in a regional wastewater project known as the North Monument Creek Interceptor (NMCI). Colorado Springs Utilities is working with six northern El Paso County sanitation districts to develop a plan to consolidate wastewater collection and treatment for the benefit of all participating communities. The NMCI project will construct a 10-mile pipeline to collect wastewater flows from the six districts and northern Colorado Springs and transport the flows for treatment at the J.D. Phillips Water Resource Recovery Facility in Colorado Springs.

The project will provide benefits to the participants, including:

• Complying with the recommendations of state and federal authorities to consolidate regional wastewater treatment facilities.
• Spreading the costs of compliance with increasingly stringent state and federal standards across a larger customer base.
• Reducing or eliminating operating costs associated with multiple wastewater lift stations.
• Increasing efficiency by treating additional flows that would utilize already available capacity at the J.D. Phillips facility.

Participants include:

• Triview Metropolitan District
• Colorado Springs Utilities
• Donala Water and Sanitation District
• Forest Lakes Metropolitan District
• Monument Sanitation District
• Palmer Lake Sanitation District
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation

The project participants are working with Colorado Springs Utilities to develop an Environmental Assessment (EA) that is required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The U.S. Air Force Academy will act as the lead federal agency ensuring NEPA compliance. The NEPA process will take up to 36 months. For more information or to see a map of possible pipeline routes, visit: csu.org/pages/wastewaterproject.aspx.