First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project

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To support Loveland’s rapidly growing east side—where new neighborhoods, schools, and businesses are emerging—a major wastewater infrastructure project will begin in late December 2025. This project is part of the City’s broader effort to expand the wastewater system, ensuring it can meet the community’s long-term needs with increased capacity and improved reliability.

Scope of Work

Wastewater System Improvements

Garney Construction will install a new 36-inch wastewater interceptor on First Street from Denver Avenue east to Willow Bend Park. The larger line will relieve pressure on the existing 24-inch pipe and enhance the system’s ability to handle future growth. This work marks the second phase of a planned collection system upgrade that runs from the East Side Lift Station downstream to the Wastewater Reclamation Facility.

A wastewater interceptor is a large underground pipe that carries wastewater to a treatment plant. Acting like a main highway for the sewer system, it collects flow from smaller neighborhood pipes and moves it efficiently down the line. The new line will span about 1,500 feet.

Construction will move from downstream to upstream along First Street, with excavation reaching depths of up to 19 feet. The new line will run parallel to the existing line, boosting both capacity and stability.

Work at the Farmer’s Ditch crossing will begin in early January and continue into February, weather permitting, when the ditch is inactive. At the intersection of First Street and Denver Avenue, deep excavation will require a full closure of First Street from Denver Avenue to Sculptor Drive for about four weeks. Eastbound First Street is scheduled to open in February, while westbound First Street is scheduled to remain closed through May 2026. Detours will be available via U.S. Highway 34 or Mountain Lion Avenue.

Construction Impacts

Traffic & Access

During construction, traffic control measures will be in place to maintain safe travel through the area. Temporary traffic pattern changes should be expected on East 1st Street and, to a lesser degree, North Denver Avenue, but local access to residences and for business deliveries and customers will be maintained.

Schedule

Work will occur along East 1st Street, starting at North Denver Avenue and progressing east. For the most part, work will take place between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. There may be occasional Saturday work.

Pedestrian Safety

For everyone’s safety, temporary construction fencing will be installed around open trenches. Pedestrians are encouraged to use caution and maintain a safe distance from construction activities at all times, both during and after working hours.

Planning and Funding

The City’s 2021 Wastewater Collections System Master Plan identified a capacity limitation in existing infrastructure in the Eastside and New Boyd Basins. This is a high priority improvement project due to anticipated growth in east Loveland.

The Project is funded with 2025 Wastewater Utility budget funds. Garney Construction, a water utilities contractor, has been awarded a construction contract for completion of this work. The total contract amount for this work is $3,166,866.00. The project is anticipated to begin construction in January of 2026 and is expected to be complete by May of 2026.

The planning and launch of this project remain on schedule and under budget.

To support Loveland’s rapidly growing east side—where new neighborhoods, schools, and businesses are emerging—a major wastewater infrastructure project will begin in late December 2025. This project is part of the City’s broader effort to expand the wastewater system, ensuring it can meet the community’s long-term needs with increased capacity and improved reliability.

Scope of Work

Wastewater System Improvements

Garney Construction will install a new 36-inch wastewater interceptor on First Street from Denver Avenue east to Willow Bend Park. The larger line will relieve pressure on the existing 24-inch pipe and enhance the system’s ability to handle future growth. This work marks the second phase of a planned collection system upgrade that runs from the East Side Lift Station downstream to the Wastewater Reclamation Facility.

A wastewater interceptor is a large underground pipe that carries wastewater to a treatment plant. Acting like a main highway for the sewer system, it collects flow from smaller neighborhood pipes and moves it efficiently down the line. The new line will span about 1,500 feet.

Construction will move from downstream to upstream along First Street, with excavation reaching depths of up to 19 feet. The new line will run parallel to the existing line, boosting both capacity and stability.

Work at the Farmer’s Ditch crossing will begin in early January and continue into February, weather permitting, when the ditch is inactive. At the intersection of First Street and Denver Avenue, deep excavation will require a full closure of First Street from Denver Avenue to Sculptor Drive for about four weeks. Eastbound First Street is scheduled to open in February, while westbound First Street is scheduled to remain closed through May 2026. Detours will be available via U.S. Highway 34 or Mountain Lion Avenue.

Construction Impacts

Traffic & Access

During construction, traffic control measures will be in place to maintain safe travel through the area. Temporary traffic pattern changes should be expected on East 1st Street and, to a lesser degree, North Denver Avenue, but local access to residences and for business deliveries and customers will be maintained.

Schedule

Work will occur along East 1st Street, starting at North Denver Avenue and progressing east. For the most part, work will take place between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. There may be occasional Saturday work.

Pedestrian Safety

For everyone’s safety, temporary construction fencing will be installed around open trenches. Pedestrians are encouraged to use caution and maintain a safe distance from construction activities at all times, both during and after working hours.

Planning and Funding

The City’s 2021 Wastewater Collections System Master Plan identified a capacity limitation in existing infrastructure in the Eastside and New Boyd Basins. This is a high priority improvement project due to anticipated growth in east Loveland.

The Project is funded with 2025 Wastewater Utility budget funds. Garney Construction, a water utilities contractor, has been awarded a construction contract for completion of this work. The total contract amount for this work is $3,166,866.00. The project is anticipated to begin construction in January of 2026 and is expected to be complete by May of 2026.

The planning and launch of this project remain on schedule and under budget.

  • FOR RELEASE: First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Road Closure Saturday, Jan. 24

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    City of Loveland, Colorado

    MEDIA RELEASE

    CONTACT: Tracey Hewson, Public Information Officer

    970-962-3710
    tracey.hewson @cityofloveland.org

    First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Road Closure Saturday, Jan. 24

    LOVELAND, Colo. – January 22, 2026 – The City of Loveland will close a portion of East First Street east of the Denver Avenue intersection from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24, to safely position a crane for tree removal. A posted detour will be in place.

    East First Street will be fully closed east of the Denver Avenue intersection during the closure. Eastbound traffic on East First Street will be detoured north on Denver Avenue, east on U.S. 34/East Eisenhower Boulevard and south on North Boyd Lake Avenue. Westbound traffic traveling to East First Street will be detoured east on East First Street, which becomes Corvus Drive and then East Fifth Street, to North Boyd Lake Avenue, then north to U.S. 34/East Eisenhower Boulevard, west to Denver Avenue and back south to East First Street.

    The project began in late December. Crews have completed dewatering, the process of removing groundwater from the site to allow deep trench construction. The construction team is scheduled to begin installing new pipe the week of Jan. 26. Beginning in late February, East First Street is expected to be fully closed for three to four weeks to install pipe beneath the roadway. Additional details will be shared as they become available.

    Additional project details can be found at https://www.letstalkloveland.org/first-street-wastewater-improvements. For questions regarding the project, please email tracey.hewson@cityofloveland.org, or call 970-962-3710.


  • FOR RELEASE: First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Begins

    Share FOR RELEASE: First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Begins on Facebook Share FOR RELEASE: First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Begins on Twitter Share FOR RELEASE: First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Begins on Linkedin Email FOR RELEASE: First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Begins link

    City of Loveland, Colorado

    MEDIA RELEASE

    CONTACT: Tracey Hewson, Public Information Officer

    970-962-3710
    Tracey.Hewson@cityofloveland.org

    First Street Wastewater Interceptor Project Begins

    LOVELAND, Colo - December 9, 2025 - A major wastewater project is set to begin in later this month to support Loveland’s rapidly growing east side, where new neighborhoods, schools and businesses are continuing to take shape. Early work will focus on preparing the site, including establishing staging areas, installing erosion controls, removing select trees and conducting utility potholing and drilling. Equipment staging will take place outside the right-of-way south of the E. First Street and North Denver Avenue intersection, as well as at the northeast corner of Willow Bend Park. No lane closures will impact traffic during this stage of work.

    To meet the community’s long-term needs, the city is expanding its wastewater system to increase capacity and improve reliability. Garney Construction will install a new 36-inch wastewater interceptor from Denver Avenue east to Willow Bend Park. The larger line will provide additional capacity within the basin and enhance the system’s ability to handle future growth. This work marks the second phase of a planned collection system upgrade that runs from the East Side Lift Station downstream to the Wastewater Reclamation Facility.

    A wastewater interceptor is a large underground pipe that carries wastewater to a treatment plant. Acting like a main highway for the sewer system, it collects flow from smaller neighborhood pipes and moves it efficiently down the line. The new line will span about 1,500 feet.

    Construction will move from downstream to upstream, with excavation reaching depths of up to 19 feet. The new line will run parallel to the existing line, boosting both capacity and stability.

    Work at the Farmer’s Ditch crossing will begin in mid-January and will continue into February, when the ditch is inactive. At the intersection of First Street and Denver Avenue, deep excavation will require a full closure of First Street from Denver Avenue to Sculptor Drive for about four weeks. Eastbound First Street is scheduled to open in February, while westbound First Street is scheduled to remain closed through May 2026. Detours will be available via U.S. Highway 34 or Mountain Lion Avenue.

    The project remains on schedule and under budget.

    For more information, please visit https://www.letstalkloveland.org.


Page last updated: 23 Jan 2026, 02:46 PM