Pump & Circumstances: Aurora’s highly complex Prairie Waters project should calm fears of a drought
...transmitted via fiber-optic cable running parallel to the pipeline. “The high-tech control system, including numerous valves and monitoring devices, was a huge component of the project,” Marciniak says.
No Eminent Domain Other than the UV units, the majority of materials came from local manufacturers and suppliers. Pipe was fabricated locally by Northwest Pipe.
Permit applications had to be routed through numerous municipalities: Weld, Adams and Arapahoe Counties, in addition to the cities of Brighton, Denver and Commerce City, each with different review procedures. But an early start and proactive approach helped prevent delays, including acquiring approximately 150 easements and small parcels of land.
Construction Managers: Carollo Engineers: Peter D. Binney Water Purification Facility; HDR Engineering Inc.: North Campus and conveyance system (pipeline); Brown and Caldwell: Robertsdale Tank and Pump Station
Architects/Designers: Brown & Caldwell, CH2M Hill, MWH Americas
Contractors: Garney Construction Inc., Western Summit Constructors Inc., Reynolds-Tierdael, S.J. Louis Construction of Texas Ltd.
Major Subcontractors: Bemas Construction: North Campus and pump stations; BT Construction Inc.: tunneling work on North Campus and pipeline segments 1 and 3; ERS: pump stations; Lillard and Clark: Peter D. Binney Water Purification Facility, Robertsdale Tank and Pump Station
Others: Concrete Express, T-P Enterprises, Northwest Pipe, ERO
“We are proud that we never had to make demands, use threats or resort to eminent domain to obtain land,” Marciniak says. “Pipe was carefully threaded through the area to avoid major impacts to landowners. No homes were threatened or demolished. Of course, buried pipe is easier, because after installation, the surface remains unobstructed.”
Even though they are part of a “campus,” Prairie Waters’ buildings are intended to resemble an office park rather than an industrial facility, and they blend with the surroundings. At Binney, that would be Aurora Parks and Recreation land.
Linked by paved roads, the buildings at Binney feature handsome standing-seam metal roofs and cultured-stone siding that resembles rock outcroppings. Native landscaping between buildings enhances the office-park ambiance. The pump stations mimic farm buildings to fit their pastoral settings.
