Boulevard swap costly/ City, Utilities at odds about who pays the

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), May 14, 2000 | by Pam Zubeck

City officials are trying to figure out who will pay millions of dollars needed to eventually move water, sewer, gas and power lines along Powers Boulevard.

Last year, an agreement between the city and the state called for the Colorado Department of Transportation to take over Powers from Colorado Springs and for the city to take over Academy Boulevard from the state.

The swap allowed the state to infuse millions of dollars into widening and extending Powers north to Interstate 25. Work is to begin in 2002 and last for years.

The deal says the Department of Transportation doesn't have to pay for moving utility lines to prevent damage during construction. Which brings up the question: Who will pay for that work?

At this point, Colorado Springs Utilities and City Hall disagree about who picks up the tab.

If Utilities pays, the cost - up to $16 million in the next 20 years - will end up on utility bills. If the city pays, other critical projects, such as fire stations and drainage channels, may have to be postponed. The city could also apply for a federal grant.

Utilities officials said they only recently learned of the deal from state officials. The city says Utilities was given a copy of the agreement last year and never raised concern.

That's not the only dispute.

City transportation manager Dave Zelenok, who helped negotiate the Powers deal, noted the swap of Powers and Academy doesn't actually happen until years from now. As long as Powers remains a city street, he said, the cost of moving utilities is shared between Colorado Springs Utilities and the city.

"That's not my understanding," said Lisa Myers, the chief operating officer for Utilities. "We do have cause for concern, and we are talking with them (city officials) about that."

Meanwhile, the City Council as a whole hasn't been told of the snafu, said Councilman Lionel Rivera.

"If there's not coordination between Utilities and the city," he said, "that's very disappointing."

The tab

It will cost up to $16 million in the next 20 years to move utility lines along Powers Boulevard to prevent damage during widening and extending the road north to I-25.