Denver Water Issues About $175,500 in Citations for Water Restriction Violations in Early October

Denver Water issued about $175,500 in citations for water restriction violations from October 1 to October 12, with 297 substantiated reports, Yahoo reported. The utility received about 840 water waste reports in that period, and the violations totaled 252 residential and 45 non-residential properties.

Denver Water's October Violation Totals

The lawn-watering restriction, which includes a ban on spray irrigation, went into effect on October 1. Greg Fisher, Denver Water's manager of demand planning and efficiency, said the utility is always going to have some customers who either did not get the message or continue to water.

"But I think, when you look at this in total, our customers have done a great job so far this month," Fisher said. Customers used about 33% less water compared with the same October time frame from recent years, he said.

Fisher said the money from the violations will be added to Denver Water's general fund, where all of the utility's revenue goes. The additional fees go on customers' water bills, and separate letters and emails are also sent. "We try to communicate what it was, and what it was for," Fisher said, "so that they understand."

Denver Water's Operations and Dam Projects

Denver Water is a private utility founded in 1905 and headquartered in Denver, with an estimated revenue of $500 million to $1 billion, according to akta.pro company records. The utility plans to construct a new operations campus in Denver's Elyria-Swansea neighborhood, with construction starting in May and finishing by July 2027, the same records show. The Gross Dam Project involves raising the dam by 131 feet using Roller Compacted Concrete, making it the tallest dam in Colorado and the largest dam raise in the U.S., a $565 million project led by Kiewit Corp. and Barnard Construction Co.

Denver Water's Restrictions Before October

Denver Water banned lawn watering starting October 1 due to severe drought, with fines up to $2,000 for violations, Yahoo reported in September 2026. The ban remains until the board decides when sprinklers can resume, and storage levels could drop to 60% before the 2027 runoff season. The Denver Post reported in October 2026 that customers reduced water use by 9% through September, short of the utility's 20% goal amid record drought, and that the utility issued 2,000 warnings and levied 110 fines totaling about $30,000.

When Denver Water's Restrictions May Lift

Fisher said the plan is for the restrictions to lift sometime next spring, depending on factors such as usage and snowmelt over the winter season. "It will be in spring, likely around May," he said, "once the board has a better picture of how much water we have, and what restrictions look like for the summer of 2027."