DENVER, CO Stantec, along with primary subcontractor AECOM, has been awarded a $13 million design services contract by Denver Water for the Gross Reservoir Expansion Project in Boulder County, Colorado. The project aims to increase system reliability and resiliency to meet the needs of the Denver Water service area's more than 1.4-million residents. 

The Gross Reservoir Expansion Project will raise the height of the existing dam by 131 feet, increasing the reservoir's capacity to approximately 119,000 total acre feet. The project will be designed to prevent water shortfalls during droughts or other weather-related events such as wildfires and will provide mitigation and enhancement projects that the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has determined will deliver a "net environmental benefit." Plus, the expanded reservoir will help balance the Denver Water North (Colorado River Basin via Moffat Tunnel) and South (South Platte and Blue River Basin) collection systems, ensuring greater resiliency and flexibility to provide water from multiple sources to serve the community. 

"The Gross Reservoir Expansion Project not only protects customers' water needs now and in the future, but it will help preserve Colorado's natural environment," said Craig Harris, Leader of Western WaterPower & Dams for Stantec. "We are proud to work with the Denver Water project team and contribute to a project that will provide reliable water in a sustainable and responsible way." 

The services provided by the partnership of Stantec and AECOM will include developing a cost-effective and safe design for raising Gross Dam, while addressing and mitigating any project impacts. The Stantec and AECOM team combines relevant water infrastructure and engineering experience to create innovative designs with proven technologies. Design services for the Gross Reservoir Expansion Project are expected to be completed by December 2020, with expected construction completed by 2025.