FROM THE ARCHIVES: The Dedication of the Windy Gap Project

Forty years ago this summer, the dedication of a new reservoir to serve the needs for hundreds of thousands of residents in Northern Colorado helped to usher in a new era for Northern Water.

On June 29, 1985, nearly 500 people helped to celebrate the milestone of Windy Gap Reservoir and the infrastructure that would bring water from that reservoir to the Colorado-Big Thompson Project for delivery to residents in the Municipal Subdistrict of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District.

Work on the project took more than a decade of negotiations, permitting and construction, culminating in a project that has provided on average more than 20,000 acre-feet of water that can be used and reused by project participants.

The dedication of the Windy Gap Project also was a milestone for Northern Water, because its operation set the stage for the organization to assume the maintenance and operations of Colorado-Big Thompson Project facilities in Grand County. On June 1, 1986, Northern Water took over operations at Willow Creek Reservoir, Lake Granby, Shadow Mountain Reservoir and the pump plants and canals associated with them.

Soon, Chimney Hollow Reservoir will be dedicated and will provide water storage for the water diverted through the Windy Gap Project.