About 43 road miles southeast of the Chimney Hollow Reservoir Project sits the growing city of Fort Lupton with a current population of just over 8,500. Fort Lupton has almost 1,200 acre-feet of storage in Chimney Hollow Reservoir. 

Fort Lupton City Administrator Chris Cross said that Chimney Hollow Reservoir will provide more certainty for the city’s long-term water supply.  

“It allows us to have a place to store a portion of our Windy Gap units maximizing our water portfolio for both wet and dry years. This lets the precious resource of water be retained until the appropriate time to use over a year or multiple years,” he said. 

In addition to providing water supply reliability, Fort Lupton is also prioritizing water conservation efforts. In May 2023, Fort Lupton participated in the Sonoran Institute’s Growing Water Smart workshop and developed a multi-goal strategy for water conservation and planning. These goals include integrating water and land use