Fountain — along with Security and Widefield water districts — is part of an existing permanent well water lease with Venetucci Farm. A new 50-year agreement allows Fountain to take part of Security’s allocation from the historic farm’s wellfield in southern El Paso County.
Security initiated the negotiations because it didn't need the full amount of water it was entitled to, according to a presentation at a recent city council meeting by Fountain’s water resources manager, Taylor Murphy. Widefield’s portion of the water is unaffected.
Fountain will get about 521 acre-feet of water a year, up from the current allocation of 135 acre-feet. An acre-foot could serve about 1-5 households, depending on usage efficiency. The city staff estimates this new supply could support about 1,000 new home taps.
Regarding what happens at the end of the current agreement with Security, Murphy said the lease is set up to continue beyond 2076 and has options to extend if all parties agree.
“That is our job going forward,” he said, “to ensure that every time we bring on new water and do long-term future planning, we are baking in factors of safety and allocation so that if that water goes away, nobody is left high and dry.”
Additionally, Fountain Mayor Sharon Thompson said during the council meeting that the city does have more water rights.
"The kink in the system right now is we can't treat the water. So this will get us over and maybe at some point somebody 40 years down the road will have a lot of money and they can build that treatment plant. I'm not going to worry about it at this point. It's very common … to build your assets as you go, as you need them, not not decades before you need them.”
The water goes through a Security facility, where it is treated to meet all primary drinking water standards– including addressing PFAS contamination– and then it is delivered to the other lease partners.
The volume of water transferred each year will increase between 2026 and 2030 with costs rising accordingly. The additional annual expense to Fountain is estimated to eventually reach about $190,000. Fountain’s current annual water supply costs are approximately $3.3 million.
This new water will help support development, which Fountain leaders have paused in the past. City leaders say it will not be a sudden change and 50% of the water will be allocated for residential use, 30% for commercial use and 20% for other city projects.
“It's important to note that this water really helps us increase our system capacity by roughly 20% with the amount of taps that we are bringing online to enable new growth and development,” Murphy said. “So it is really an effective supply of water for the cost that we are paying.”
The historic Venetucci Farm in southern El Paso County, known for giving pumpkins to area school children each fall for decades, is owned by the non-profit Pikes Peak Real Estate Foundation, which writes on its website that its mission is to “receive, manage, sell, steward, and develop real estate and related assets for the benefit of our community.”
