City Council honors Harold Miskel's career of service

Hundreds of dedicated employees are working daily on plans for the future and maintaining the vitality of the community as we continue to grow, regulations change and technologies evolve. In this, our centennial year of offering four utility services, many of us stand in awe and gratitude for those who’ve come before us responsibly planning for the systems, processes and assets that allow us to successfully deliver safe, reliable utility services today.

Earlier this week, City Council passed a timely resolution in honor of a noble public servant, Harold Miskel, who was an integral player in evolving our planning processes, and securing and delivering water to Colorado Springs since 1966, by naming a future reservoir for him.

The now named “Harold Miskel Reservoir” is included in our plans as a reservoir about 16 miles southeast of the city. Water that will be stored and exchanged in this location is possible because of work that Harold and his team pursued during his 33-year career at Colorado Springs Utilities: a municipal exchange water right, the Arkansas River Exchange Decree.

The decree was recognized by the Water Court in the 1980s and it allows us to maximize our transmountain water supplies. That’s water that we have rights to, that originates nearly 200 miles away in the Colorado River basin. According to water law in Colorado, water that originates outside our native river basin (Arkansas), can be reused to extinction. Having the ability to exchange the water once it arrives in our river basin makes using it to extinction, for the benefit of the residents of the municipality, possible.

Not only do current employees stand in awe of our forefathers, like Harold, it's notable that he gained much respect and continues to be lauded his colleagues – now former employees and retirees. The effort to name this future reservoir for him was prompted by a group of former utility workers who wrote letters asking for the consideration of naming the reservoir for him. City Council unanimously passed the resolution to make it official on Dec. 10, 2024.

Harold contributed to operations during his tenure for all four utility services and made great contributions to water use in Colorado in many other ways. Some of his other noteworthy accomplishments include:

• • He helped lead the unification of the utility department into a City-owned enterprise in the 1990s.
  • He oversaw the creation of the Colorado Springs Utilities brand and supported volunteer and giving programs that continue to benefit the community today.
  • He was and continues as a passionate and tireless advocate for Colorado Springs water interests before Congress and federal agencies.
  • Following his retirement from Springs Utilities in 1999, he remained active in the water community serving on the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District Board and he is a lifetime, honorary member of Colorado Water Congress.