Water in Palmer Lake (Denver, Woodmoor: houses, buying, utilities)

[treedonkey]

My wife and I are in the process of buying and moving into a home in Palmer Lake. It offers us a quality of life that we cannot find elsewhere and we are very excited about moving soon.

I've been doing a lot of research about the water situation in Palmer Lake and I've scoured google for every bit of info I could find. mostly I am trying to find out what it will take to fill the lake permanently and how soon it could happen, if at all.

It seems that there is an 'Awake the Lake' committee there, but I can't find any contact info for them. Any new info would help.

[Charles]

Next step would be to call the town government.

Check out several really good DVDs in the PPLD libraries on the Palmer Lake region by a guy named Sawatzki. Also Through the years at Monument, Colorado by Lavelett, Lucille. Best of all: Palmer Lake : a historical narrative by Sabin, Marion Savage. I've watched and read them all. Very interesting.

[treedonkey]

I emailed the government, but they didn't have much more info. Maybe I will call them in person at some point.

I knew about the Sawatzki videos, but not the others. All good suggestions, thank you very much!

-james

[COflower]

Palmer Lake is a strange little community. Anyhow, they've had a lot of water problems since 2002, the year we had a ton of fires eat up Colorado wild lands. They haven't recovered and from what the news has said, it doesn't look like they are in line to recover from the drought that has hit Colorado over the last 7-10 years.

Why C Springs Utilities doesn't help them out is beyond me. I know that PL is kind of weird in their dealings with outsiders and such but why the two communities can't come to some kind of deal is very strange.

Sorry I can't offer you much more than that but pretty much since 2002 water up there is more precious than gold.

[treedonkey]

COflower - thanks for that info.

Would you mind expounding upon the statement: "Palmer Lake is a strange little community."

[COflower]

The consensus has been that Palmer Lake is a very closed community. I could be very wrong about that but that's what I have heard about those that move in the town. On the other side of I-25 Monument seems to be more open to newcomers though.

Perhaps someone that actually lives in PL can pop on in and give you a better idea of how they deal with newcomers. I'm not talking just from those from out of state but even life-long residents get a bit of the cold shoulder. I could be very wrong on that though. It is a nice town though, perfectly nestled against the foothills and Monument Hill.

[treedonkey]

That's good to know, and thank you very much for the input. On the two trips I've made there, people seemed to be very friendly, but that was in the restaurant and stuff where they're paid to be friendly. Either way, I am fortunate have family and friends just a few miles away in Monument.

[Grahm]

I have lived in Palmer Lake since 1997. It has a small town atmosphere, and does not feel like a suburb. Because it is a small town, I guess it can seem closed, perhaps that lead to the comment from COflower. I do not find it closed, but then I live here and like the town a lot:-)

Folks here are fairly live and let live. There are no homeowners groups, no one tells you when to paint the house; of course then some houses need painting! Some folks like to live that way, and some do not. I have very good friends that live across I-25, and can't believe we live over here. It really just comes down to the lifestyle you want. The analogy I use is that Palmer Lake is Ireland while Woodmoor is England. Both are very nice places, have some things in common, but are fundamentally different.

The town has its own water supply from two lakes located in the hills above the town. You can't find a more lovely walk than the road up to the upper lake. We always have water shortages, and most summers have water restrictions. My wife and I put in a xeriscape in our front yard since we could not water during the month of July. The town council just lifted the water restrictions.

The Lake that gives Palmer Lake its name is one of the few natural lakes on the Eastern slope of Colorado. As mentioned elsewhere, it actually went dry a few years ago. This year we had a good bit of snow, and the lake looks great. Next year? Who knows.

My personal opinion is the only way to keep the lake permanently filled would be to obtain the water rights for the city. Very unfortunately this was was never done. Years ago the city saw no need, and now with all the growth it seems like obtaining the water rights would be darn near impossible. The year the lake went dry was the middle of a drought, and what little water there was had to go downstream to the folks who held the water rights. This sort of thing is only going to get worse in the future in my opinion.

So all in all Palmer Lake is a great town if you like the following.
A small town atmosphere--we still have a Christmas Yule log festival.
Beautiful walks--there are a million within 10 minutes of my door.
Quiet people who don't tell you what to do--you talk to them they talk to you.

It is probably not so great if the following bother you.
Trains--I don't notice them anymore, but there a lot of them!
Live and let live atmosphere.
Motorcycles--Palmer Lake is on Highway 105, we have lots of motorcycles coming through town in the summer on their way up 105 to Denver.

All the best,

Grahm

[treedonkey]

Grahm -

Thank you very much for the thoughtful response. I can live witht he motorcycles, don't mind the trains, have found the people welcoming, and the hiking, biking and other activities are absolutely incredible.

It is unfortunate about the lake and other water problems. You don't have an email or website contact for the 'Awake the Lake Committee' do you? In any case, I look forward to being your neighbor soon. See you around town, I'm sure.
-James

[Grahm]

I do not think the Awake the Lake folks have a website or email. They were just locals concerned about the state of the lake. There was a fairly large meeting about a year and a half ago with the town council to discuss the problem, and that is where the water rights issue came up. Till that is fixed, I think we are always at the mercy of the weather.