The Story Behind the Place – Howard L. Morton Water Reclamation Facility

Motorists traveling on 95th Street (also known as Hover Road) near the intersection with Niwot Road notice a sandstone sign on the west side of the road: "Howard L. Morton Water Reclamation Facility, Niwot Sanitation District." The district offices as well as the actual water treatment facility sit farther back from the sign, accessed by a narrow road which dead ends at the offices.

Howard L. Morton farmed the land up the hill and east of the small community of Niwot, which had been platted in 1875. When IBM came to Boulder County in the mid-1960s, building a large manufacturing plant in unincorporated Boulder County west of the Highway 52 intersection with the Diagonal Highway, the agricultural community began to change. Morton saw the need for housing in the area, and platted the subdivision known as Morton Heights.

After converting much of his farm to a housing subdivision, Morton became a real estate agent, founding the business now known as The Niwot Group at Compass, which is now owned by long-time Morton Heights resident and community leader Pat Murphy.

Morton also saw the need for a water and sewer system to serve the homes in and around Niwot, as well as the soon to be built Niwot Elementary School and Niwot High School. Before that, homes and businesses in Niwot's old town relied on wells and septic systems for water and sewer systems.

Morton led the effort to create a special district as a quasi-municipal corporation under Colorado law with the ability to levy property taxes and incur bonded indebtedness to build sanitation facilities. After a vote of property owners, the Niwot Sanitation District was formed in 1967 to serve the residents and businesses of the quickly growing community.

The water treatment plant was originally a lagoon system using two aerated lagoons, but was upgraded twice to the current facilities to fully meet all state and federal environmental standards. The fully reclaimed water is used to irrigate land surrounding the treatment facilities, and excess reclaimed water is discharged into Dry Creek. District offices and the water treatment facilities are located off 95th Street, a quarter-mile north of the intersection with Niwot Road.

Morton, who was also involved in the creation of the Left Hand Water District, served on the board of directors of the Niwot Sanitation District for many years. Following his retirement, the district's water reclamation facility was named in his honor, the Howard L. Morton Water Reclamation Facility, with a sandstone sign near the entrance to the district offices.