SERVING WITH SUCCESS WILLOWS WATER. Willows Water District 6930 South Holly Circle Centennial, Colorado

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1 Willows Water District 6930 South Holly Circle Centennial, Colorado WILLOWS WATER. SERVING WITH SUCCESS Willows office building is located at 6930 S. Holly Circle. You can get your questions answered there or on our website. The office, constructed in Colorado mountain style, contains a boardroom and library, administrative and billing offices, and a lower level garage for district maintenance vehicles, repair shop and storage. Willows Water District Centennial, Colorado

2 WILLOWS WATER. JOIN THE FAMILY WILLOWS HISTORY. A LOOK BACK Willows is a Title 32 special district, organized to provide water service within a 3.6 square mile area of Arapahoe County. It operates as a quasi-governmental municipal corporation, and is an enterprise under Colorado law. Residents and property owners in the District elect its five directors. When Willows was established in 1974, Denver Water was not providing water to suburban areas. Willows began using well water to serve its customers. The District acquired rights to groundwater sources in the Denver Basin aquifers, and developed additional wells as demand grew. The District constructed the infrastructure necessary to provide a reliable water system, with storage reservoirs, conduits, a booster station, water distribution mains in neighborhood streets, and a telemetry control system. Willows Water District has provided quality and dependable drinking water to homes and businesses in the heart of Arapahoe County since From its formation as a small groundwater-based utility, to its current position as an organized water enterprise, Willows has built a reputation as a well-constructed and well-managed district. Willows has seen a lot of changes during its growth, and the direction the district has taken will provide its residential and commercial customers the best in water and service. By the early 1990s Willows operated a network of more than 20 wells both in the District and in Northern Douglas County. Willows also built connections with Denver Water s system for supplemental supplies. One large subdivision within the district boundaries, Highlands 460, is served by Denver Water under a read and bill agreement, with Denver Water providing water and collecting the bills, but with Willows collecting property taxes in the area and maintaining the distribution system. Willows accumulated surface water rights which were traded to Denver Water for additional treated water. This trade was the initial step towards the District receiving its supply from Denver Water through a master meter agreement. In April, 2002,Willows finished purchasing water taps from Denver Water to cover their 4,800 residential and commercial accounts. This agreement provided Willows with replenishable resources and eliminated the dependence on finite groundwater resources. Willows, in turn, was able to sell its well water rights and system to help pay for the Denver system buy-in. Denver Water delivers 234,000 acre feet of treated water every year to more than one million customers in the Denver metro area, about half of those customers are in the suburbs, like Willows.

3 PROFILE: Willows Water District WILLOWS. FINANCIALLY STRONG AND PROGRESSIVE Customers: 4,800 (95% residential) East area Land area: 2,300 acres 3.6 square miles Average annual water consumption: East area - 3,200 acre feet Highlands acre feet District-wide - 4,000 acre feet Average family use: Half an acre foot, about 163,000 gallons per year WILLOWS FINANCIAL SNAPSHOT Willows is a financially strong special district. Most of its revenues are derived from water sales and fees, with property taxes and interest income providing the remainder of the revenue.willows works to keep its rates, fees and taxes low. Willows maintains excellent ratings from the key bond investor services: Aaa from Moody s and AAA from Standard & Poors. WILLOWS REPUTATION Over the years Willows gained a good reputation as a progressive and wellmanaged water system. During the years it operated a well system, Willows received a federal grant to evaluate the viability of aquifer recharge by adding excess water in wet seasons to deep underground aquifers and retrieving the stored water during dry seasons. The District was among the first utilities to install SCADA (System Control and Data Acquisition) telemetry among all its wells, pump stations and reservoirs to better control water delivery by remote instruction. Willows converted household water meters to scan technology for remote reading, and encourages customers to use automatic deduction for bill paying.

4 YOU ARE A WILLOWS CUSTOMER, IF YOU LIVE OR WORK IN: Arapahoe Village Brookhaven Carriage Gate Cherry Park Dry Creek Townhomes and Office Village Festival Fox Pointe Foxridge Georgetown Village Grey Hill Highland View Highlands 460 The Hillside Holly Creek Homestead Homestead Farm Homestead Office Park Homestead in the Willows Liberty Hills Mill Creek Mira Vista Monterey Olde Mill Ridge (The) Spring Creek Sterling Pointe Sturbridge Sunrise IMPORTANT FACTS: Website address: willowswater.org Billing cycle: Bi-monthly Board Meetings: 7:30 a.m., Third Friday of every month EMERGENCY: AutoPay: AutoPay is the District s automated bill paying option. Your bi-monthly water invoice is deducted directly from your checking or savings account at no additional charge. Contact the District office for enrollment details.

5 CONSERVATION Consumer interest in water conservation increases and decreases depending upon water availability. WILLOWS WATER AND THE ENVIRONMENT. Colorado s natural drought cycle prompted water restrictions and water usage surcharges in 2002 and Willows uses its customer newsletter, special mailings, and website to provide water conservation strategies, including water calendars and water restrictions. Conservation is not just a habit, but is a lifestyle decision. It is more than simply watching lawn watering times, turning off faucets, and repairing leaky toilets. Water conservation involves lifestyle changes, drought resistant landscaping design, rethinking lawn irrigation with updated timers and rain detectors, and buying appliances that use less water. As a Denver Water customer, Willows is now contractually obligated to follow and enforce the rules that Denver Water imposes on its customers. WATER QUALITY Willows water has always met Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements and had excellent taste. The surface water collected and treated by Denver Water is of high quality and consistently surpasses drinking water standards. The EPA requires every water utility serving over 15 service connections, of which Willows is one, to send a Consumer Confidence Report to every customer on an annual basis. The report contains laboratory test results and measurements of minerals, chemicals and substances found in drinking water as a result of the origin of the water. Willows publishes the report in the spring with a mailing to every customer. Willows water is regularly tested at the laboratories of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Water quality reports are open for public inspection at the district offices. Willows works to maintain a secure water system.

6 What Every Customer Needs to Know PLEASE TEAR OFF OPPOSITE PAGE AND KEEP FOR FUTURE REFERENCE WATER SERVICE SHUT-OFF VALVE The District occasionally receives calls from distressed homeowners who are experiencing a water leak and do not know how or where to shut off their water.while the District will dispatch field service representatives to assist homeowners in these situations, a lot of damage may occur before a District service person or a plumber responds. The main water supply valve (M) inside the house should be accessible and family members should know where it is and (M) how to operate it in case of emergencies.the location of shutoffs for other utilities, such as gas and electric service, should also be known. A few minutes of time locating and discussing these items with your family may help prevent future damage or injury. The main shut-off valve (M) is most often found in the basement in a direct line from the street and below the water meter.the valve is normally on a vertical supply pipe where it enters the house from outside.turning the valve clockwise shuts off the water service to the entire house. Know where your shut-off valve is, especially if a basementremodeling project has concealed the valve behind drywall or paneling. WATER METER The water meter is typically located in the basement, with a remote reading device (scan disk) on the outside front or side wall of the home.willows meter readers obtain the reading on the meter through the Hexagram scan disk, using a hand-held computer, and upload the reading into Willows billing software. We recommend that customers periodically check the reading on the meter with that on the bill to check billing accuracy. Please keep in mind that readings are taken at the beginning of every even numbered month.your observed reading may differ slightly based on reading date. If you believe there is an error, please notify Willows customer service staff. CURB STOP COVER Whether the meter is inside or outside a residence or business, a curb stop valve and access box is outside the structure, usually at the front property line, where the water pipe enters the customer s property. The curb stop box has a four to five-inch diameter cover, which provides access to the underground valve. Frequently, the curb stop box becomes damaged or broken during final grading or landscape installation.when this occurs, the valve cannot be operated and may result in extensive delays in efforts to turn off water service for repairs. The customer is responsible for maintenance of the curb stop valve and box.we strongly recommend that our customers identify where their curb stop box is located in the event of an emergency necessitating water shut off at the curb stop.