Work is underway on a 2-year, $15 million dam rehabilitation projected at the South Catamount Reservoir. The lake is a popular attraction on the north slope of Pikes Peak and plays a critical role in storing and delivering water to Colorado Springs.
Much of the work is focused on preserving the 90 foot tall, 145,000 square foot steel dam.
"The dam itself is in remarkable condition and we'd like to keep it that way," said Bill Sturtevant, Chief Dam Safety Engineer with Colorado Springs Utilities.
At a media tour Thursday, crews from Cobalco Services were sand-blasting away old layers of protective coating on the steel while simultaneously reapplying a new coat.
"Because raw steel develops rust blooms within four hours, the crews have to blast and then re-coat the blasted steel the same day," explained project manager Larysa Voronova.
This resurfacing work is similar to the dam rehabilitation completed last year at Crystal Creek Reservoir with a few additional projects.
"We are going to rebuild the valve house, it's essentially the heart of the dam," Voronova said.
"We're replacing the pipe that connects this reservoir to our water treatment plant," added Sturtevant. "So, we're taking out a bunch of pipe and putting in new pipe downstream."
Both dams were built during the Great Depression as projects with the Works Progress Administration. Steel dams are rare, only five are in use throughout the US. Four of them are incorporated into the Colorado Springs Utilities System.
Sturtevant said Colorado Springs Utilities strives to maintain its water infrastructure at a high level.
"Our dam safety program is very robust and tries to address these situations well ahead of them becoming more costly situation," he said.
The protective coating on the steel dam has been reapplied before in the reservoir's 87 year history. However, Voronova said it is rare to empty the lake for a large maintenance project.
"Generally, we do these projects every 30 to 50 years because it takes a lot of effort and money to do something like this," she said
Trails and access roads surrounding the South Catamount are closed for the duration of the construction project. A narrow, single-lane road crosses the dam providing access from the Pikes Peak Highway to the North Catamount Reservoir.
Voronova explained crews need to bring heavy equipment and materials to the job site using the dam road and surrounding trail.
"We just thought that it would be safer for everybody to close everything,"
Colorado Springs Utilities is working with the Pikes Peak Highway Rangers and Teller County Sheriff's Office to enforce trespassing violations in the work zone.
The North Catamount Reservoir remains open to the public and can be accessed via Catamount Recreation Area Trailhead. Visitors should take Teller County Road 28 (Edlowe Rd) from US Highway 24 west of Woodland Park.
The goal is to refill the South Catamount Reservoir and reopen trail in time for the 2026 North Slope Recreation Area season.
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