Work is starting this week on the Milavec West Pump Station Screen and Filter Improvement Project. A section of the trail on the west side of Milavec Lake at the Frederick Recreation Area (8201 Colorado Blvd.) will be closed, and you will not be able to go all the way around the Lake. Work is expected to start Wednesday, March 31, and may take up to three days to complete.
Milavec Lake is beautiful and great to walk around, but it also serves an essential purpose for the Town. Frederick's raw water source comes from the Lower Boulder Ditch and is stored in Milavec Lake. The West Pump Station feeds areas in Town that cannot be fed by the older East Pump Station, including the new Westview and Clark Ranch Developments.
This work is another step towards Lake improvements. The raw water is very high in nutrients which causes algal blooms at the Lake at certain times of the year. Last year three Solar Bee circulators were installed at the Lake to reduce the potential for algae. In addition to the high nutrient load, the water is also high in fines, tiny particles that settle to the bottom of the Lake.
To improve the raw water quality, the Town identified two improvements for the West Pump Station. Those improvements include the addition of a screen at the intake to the Pump Station and a filter at the Pump Station outlet.