Bonds to expand Ziegler Reservoir

Snowmass Water and Sanitation District plans to deepen Ziegler Reservoir, which stores water for Snowmass Village and for snowmaking. The expansion will add 40 million gallons of storage, according to a district press release reported by The Aspen Times on September 15, 2026, and the newspaper reported work from May to September 2027. District Manager Kit Hamby called the added storage "an indispensable asset during periods of drought and low stream flows."

The district's website, as retrieved September 28, 2026, reported that Snowmass Village was in the highest level of drought, D4 on the U.S. Drought Monitor. Because of the drought, the district temporarily raised rates on Tiers 3 through 5 of water use from July 1 through September 30, 2026.

The ballot question gives three purposes for the expansion: to increase the municipal water supply, improve raw water quality and provide additional water for emergency fire suppression. To the extent funds are available, the borrowing also finances system improvements, which the question does not list.

A yes vote lets the district issue up to $15 million in general obligation bonds, with a maximum repayment cost of $22.5 million, and raise its taxes by up to $2 million a year. Each year's principal, any premium and interest come from property taxes levied "without limit as to the mill rate," in amounts that stay within those dollar caps. The rate is set to collect the payment due, so in a year when the district's total assessed value is lower, the same payment can take a higher rate.

The bonds' maximum net effective interest rate is five and one-half percent a year. The district's board of directors decides when to issue the bonds, whether to sell them at, above or below face value, and on what other terms, within the question's limits. The question sets no end year; the levy pays only the principal, premium and interest on these bonds.

The Colorado Division of Property Taxation lists the district's 2025 levies at 4.483 mills in total: a 2.412-mill general levy, a 1.994-mill bond levy, a 0.068-mill special levy and a 0.009-mill abatement levy.