In our new virtual world, continuing to engage the community has been a challenge that many of us at the City are working on. Even with our highly qualified staff and proven methods of community engagement, it’s been tough!  Something special happens when you have person-to-person engagement events - there is energy and ideas and solutions. Our team continues to work on achieving those same things in the virtual world.  Reaching our communities’ underrepresented groups to have conversations and input can be challenging. There are relationships to be built, complicated and complex information to share, and new methods to ensure we hear all voices. 

In this month’s newsletter, you will see several ways to engage in addition to our ongoing opportunities with Our Climate Future (the update to the Climate Action Plan, Road to Zero Waste and Energy Policy).  We know there is survey fatigue, computer-eye fatigue, and for me – just general change-fatigue, but it’s so important to hear your voice.  Consider forwarding this newsletter to a friend who does not normally provide input to City processes.  Maybe they will even sign up for future newsletters at fcgov.com/subscriptions. 

So THANK YOU in advance for lending your voice and giving us your time on our plans, programs, and projects.  We listen.

Enjoy the newsletter,

Michelle

The proximity of the Cameron Peak Fire and others currently burning in the state is affecting our air quality. Symptoms of smoke exposure include watering and irritated eyes, coughing, wheezing and difficulty breathing.

What can you do to stay safe?

• Limit your physical activity and time outdoors.
• Close windows and doors in your home.
• If you have central A/C, you can run it in “fan only” mode to recirculate air.
• If you don’t have A/C, use ceiling or room fans to circulate inside air. 
• Before heading out, check our local air quality for current conditions.
• Sign up for emergency alerts with NoCoAlerts or call/text 970-962-2173.

We want to hear from you!

Have you used Transfort during the coronavirus outbreak? If not, what would it take for you to return?

We are looking for feedback on how community members are making decisions to ride Transfort since the coronavirus outbreak as well as what factors they will consider before resuming transit use. The survey asks riders about their use of Transfort before and during the outbreak and their plans for riding Transfort in the future. Participants will also be able to provide feedback on different actions Transfort has taken or may take to promote safety when using Transfort service.

Starting this October, Northern Water will conduct proactive maintenance on the Soldier Canyon Dam outlet during the Horsetooth Outlet Project (HOP). This outlet delivers water to over 200,000 businesses and residents in Fort Collins and surrounding areas. 

We need your help!  To meet the water needs of our community and lower the chance that we might need mandatory water restrictions during HOP, we’re asking all residential and commercial customers to stop lawn watering and other outdoor water uses beginning Oct. 1.

There’s great news to share after the first year of Time-of-Day (TOD) residential electric pricing! With TOD, the price you pay for your electric use changes based on the time of day, day of the week, and season. In the first year, approximately 65% of our customers saved on TOD with an average monthly bill savings of $1.54. This resulted in a total energy reduction of about 16,775 megawatt-hours, which is the equivalent of powering 2,200-2,300 homes! 

Reduction in electricity use also saved over 15,800 metric tons of carbon emissions. That’s similar emissions to 12,500 cars driving for a year.

Community members are invited to begin reviewing preliminary plan documents and provide feedback. Visit the "VIEW & COMMENT: Draft Documents" tab through the link below to review drafted documents and offer comments.

This year, the Water Treatment Facility won an annual Environmental Stewardship award from Larimer County!

The Water Treatment Facility was recognized through this award for recently installing a microhydro electric generator that provides 20% of the facility’s electrical demand.  The 75-kilowatt microhydro electric generator, which generates power using the incoming water pressure from Horsetooth Reservoir, provides a direct source of renewable energy, and as a result improves air quality in our community by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This project exemplifies an innovative technology that is typically only seen in larger scale applications.