The Johnstown Town Council unanimously approved a $326,400 agreement with J-U-B Engineers Inc. Monday to update the Town’s decade-old Water System Master Plan and develop a long-term roadmap for water infrastructure as the community continues to grow.
The agreement passed 6-0, with Councilmember Damien Berg absent. The Town’s existing Water System Master Plan was completed in 2015, and staff said substantial growth and expansion of Johnstown’s water system since then have created a need for a systemwide update rather than continuing to address infrastructure needs one development at a time.
Under the agreement, J-U-B will evaluate Johnstown’s existing water system, projected demand over the next 20 years and conditions anticipated at ultimate buildout. The study will examine water supply and water rights, treatment capacity, storage, pumping, distribution infrastructure, fire flow, emergency supply, redundancy and drought resilience.
The resulting plan is intended to identify and prioritize future water projects, estimate their costs and establish growth-based trigger points for when new infrastructure should be constructed. The engineering scope specifically calls for evaluating future supply and pumping facilities, expanded storage — including a future water tank — and transmission-pipe sizing and looping.
Federal grant expected to cover half the cost
The agreement has a total cost of $326,400, with Town staff estimating that a federal Bureau of Reclamation grant will reimburse $163,200, or 50% of the project. That leaves an estimated Town share of $163,200, with expenditures expected during 2026 and 2027.
The federal funding stems from Johnstown’s application through the Bureau of Reclamation’s WaterSMART Planning and Project Design Grants program. In December 2024, Reclamation notified the Town that its application was among those receiving the highest ratings and said the agency anticipated awarding $163,200 for the project, subject to the federal financial-assistance process and eligibility requirements.
Town staff said J-U-B identified the federal grant opportunity and assisted Johnstown in pursuing the funding. Staff recommended awarding the master-plan work to J-U-B as a sole-source contract, saying the company already performs other water-system modeling for Johnstown and is familiar with the Town’s infrastructure, operating conditions, development assumptions and existing hydraulic model.
According to staff, changing consultants would require another firm to learn the system, validate existing information and independently recalibrate the hydraulic model. Staff said continuing with J-U-B would avoid duplicated work, shorten the schedule and allow more of the project budget to be directed toward the analysis itself.
Plan will examine growth and future demand
The study will evaluate approximately 10 years of historical water information along with known developments and likely future growth corridors. J-U-B will use Town land-use and population projections, water-treatment-plant production records and water-meter information to estimate demand over the next 20 years and at ultimate buildout.
The scope also calls for examining Johnstown’s water rights and whether available supplies are adequate to meet future demand. That analysis will include consumptive use, diversions and return flows, along with future treatment requirements and potential locations for additional water-treatment infrastructure.
Water storage will be another major component. Engineers will evaluate the Town’s existing North and South tanks, the anticipated future West Tank, storage at the water-treatment-plant site and other potential locations, then recommend storage volumes and identify demand levels that should trigger construction of additional facilities.
Johnstown’s hydraulic model will also be updated and calibrated using fire-flow testing, SCADA information and pressure-monitoring data. Engineers will use the model to identify bottlenecks and evaluate future transmission lines, redundancy, pressure zones and the effects of anticipated development on the distribution system.
Rates, impact fees and future projects included
The master-plan update goes beyond identifying where larger pipes or additional storage may be needed. J-U-B will also perform a general assessment of Johnstown’s water-rate and impact-fee structure to determine how identified capital projects could be allocated between existing customers and new development based on estimated beneficial use.
A separate portion of the study will examine drought preparedness and identify improvements that could strengthen Johnstown’s water-system resilience during drought conditions. The Town also plans to use that analysis as a potential basis for seeking additional grant funding for future capital projects.
The final Capital Improvement Plan will divide recommended projects into 0-to-5-year, 5-to-10-year and beyond-10-year periods. Projects could be prioritized based on system pressure, water-delivery risks, development needs, bottlenecks, aging water mains, conservation and efficiency improvements and fire-flow deficiencies.
The plan will also establish trigger points for potential pump upgrades at Johnstown’s new water treatment plant as demand increases. That approach would allow some infrastructure investments to be tied to actual growth and system demand rather than solely to predetermined calendar dates.
Public input included before final plan
The project includes a public-engagement process involving residents and organizations connected to Johnstown’s water system. Potential participants identified in the scope include Consolidated Home Supply Ditch & Reservoir Company, Consolidated Hillsborough Ditch Company, Little Thompson Water District, Front Range Fire Rescue, Loveland Fire Rescue Authority, the City of Greeley, Central Weld County Water District and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
A draft master plan will eventually be presented for public and stakeholder feedback. After relevant comments are incorporated, a final version is expected to be submitted to the Bureau of Reclamation for review and then brought back to the Town for approval, with the completed plan ultimately made available on Johnstown’s website.
J-U-B anticipates preparing the draft approximately 12 months after receiving the necessary data from the Town, followed by a final plan and Town Council presentation approximately two months after receiving Town review comments.
The updated master plan is intended to guide Johnstown through a 20-year planning period while also looking farther ahead to infrastructure needs at full buildout. The scope describes the plan as a “living” document intended to evolve as Johnstown’s water system and community continue to change.
