Helping a national water leader redevelop its sustainable campus

Denver Water Operations Complex Redevelopment

Denver Water is Colorado’s oldest and largest water utility. The public agency is a champion for sustainability and water conservation efforts. The utility also takes great pride in offering its employees a superior, happy, and healthy work environment.

When it came time to modernize their 36-acre operations complex, Denver Water hired our team as the master campus architect to help them push the boundaries of what is possible on a contemporary campus. The administration building, the heart of the complex, is LEED-NC Platinum certified and Net Zero Energy. Its sustainable features include onsite solar, a radiant slab powered by the complex’s central utility plant, a high-efficiency triple pane-glazed window system, and biophilic design. The additional seven buildings on campus, also designed by Stantec, earned Gold and Silver LEED certification.

Perhaps the most pioneering aspect of the campus is how it addresses water sustainability. Denver Water has developed a holistic plan, titled One Water, for water efficiency and reuse that promotes the correct water source for the correct use. The administration facility’s two most innovative One Water strategies are the high-volume rainwater capture for irrigation, and onsite wastewater treatment and recycling for restroom and irrigation purposes. The implementation of these systems is a first in Colorado, clearing the way for other new developments to work on their own One Water solutions.

The project has been honored with a Platinum Award from the Building Design + Construction 2021 Building Team Awards, a 2021 National Grand Conceptor Award for Engineering Excellence from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC), and a 2021 Merit Award for Energy & Environmental Lighting Design from the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES).