Celebrating 90 years of excellence

The Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake & Sandy was established in 1935 by the Salt Lake City Commission to provide a reliable water supply for the Salt Lake Valley. 

The first General Manager of Metro Water wrote:

Even before Metro Water’s official establishment, the need for reliable water was clear. Over the past 90 years, Metro Water has evolved alongside the growing needs of the Salt Lake Valley. Through constant problem-solving and collaboration, we’ve reached 2025 – and these same principles continue to guide us as we plan proactively for the future.

Although officially established in 1935, Metro Water’s history reaches back further. The formation of the Metropolitan Water District took place during a difficult period in the United States and in Utah. The country was experiencing the Great Depression, along with the worst-recorded drought in the Salt Lake Valley. Despite these challenges, Salt Lake City officials laid the groundwork for a sustainable water supply program that promised to secure the city's future and establish a long-term water supply program.

The Metropolitan Water District Act became law on March 13, 1935. This act allowed cities to create districts within their corporate boundaries to develop water resources and facilities to meet their public water needs. The act outlined the purpose and guidelines for Metropolitan Water Districts, and at a special election on August 15, 1935, voters approved the City forming such a District.

In 1935, the Provo River Water Users Association was also formed to contract with the federal government for the construction of the Provo River Project and to repay the reimbursable costs.

In the following years, Metro Water pursued shares in the Provo River Water Users Association and began planning for the acquisition and construction of distribution facilities. By December 1937, we entered a formal subscription contract for 46,000 shares. This was another collaborative effort with entities in the valley. Metro Water had also joined the Utah Lake Water Users Association in December of 1935.

The next year, Metro Water signed a construction and financing agreement with the United States for the Salt Lake Aqueduct project. The Salt Lake Aqueduct pipe sections were constructed at a plant in Pleasant Grove, and by 1942, the first 9.1 miles of the pipeline had been completed. 

Around the same time, the Deer Creek Dam and Reservoir were under construction as a part of the Provo River Project.

The Deer Creek Project provided a more affordable water supply than any prior effort and ensured sufficient capacity for the future. It delivered water that was cleaner than creek supplies, softer than groundwater, and its storage capacity was double the city’s then-current consumption – creating the resiliency we continue to rely on.

The next decade brought the completion of the Salt Lake Aqueduct in the summer of 1950, followed by the construction of Terminal Reservoir. Construction of the Terminal Reservoir began in September 1950. The underground storage tank consisted of two cells, each with a storage capacity of 20 million gallons. Terminal Reservoir is located at the end of the Salt Lake Aqueduct. The project was completed at the end of 1951.

In June 1958, construction began on the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant. The plant was positioned in line with the Salt Lake Aqueduct such that raw water could enter the plant and finished water could be transported from the Plant to Terminal Reservoir. The location at the base of Little Cottonwood Canyon created the opportunity to treat water from Little Cottonwood Creek or water transported through the Aqueduct from Deer Creek Reservoir. After two years of construction, the plant became operational in June 1960.

Metro Water’s investment in the Provo River Water Users Association steadily increased during this time, ultimately reaching 61.7% ownership through subscription contracts and exchange agreements.

Negotiations with the Army Corps of Engineers for the Little Dell project started in the mid-70s. Also, during this time, Metro Water entered into the 1976 Agreement with Central Utah Water Conservancy District, which allowed their water to move through the Salt Lake Aqueduct to their water treatment plant in Orem.

While negotiating with the Army Corps and Central Utah, Metro Water staff were responsible for the operations and maintenance of the Jordan Valley Water Treatment Plant. This effort continued from January 1977 to October 1979.

The early 1980s brought record-breaking snow levels and, as a result, City Creek flooded and coursed through the streets. Volunteers and city staff filled sandbags to create the Stake Street River. 

In 1986, Metro Water entered into an agreement with the Army Corps of Engineers, Salt Lake County, and Salt Lake City to construct the Little Dell Dam Reservoir. At the same time, Metro finalized a petition for the Central Utah Project Municipal and Industrial Water. The petition allowed access to 20,000 acre-feet per year of Central Utah Project water stored in Jordanelle Reservoir to meet the anticipated needs of Salt Lake City’s northwest quadrant.

With increasing water demand projections, Sandy City found that acquiring additional water from other sources would be costly and therefore sought to have its portion of water rights from Little Cottonwood Creek treated at the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant. By 1990, Sandy City joined our member cities, prompting our renaming to the Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake & Sandy.

Construction of the Little Dell Dam concluded in 1993, and the following year saw completion of the 10MG Reservoir in Cottonwood Heights.

With the rapid expansion of Metro Water and the growing valley, Salt Lake City and Sandy City identified future system needs, leading to the update of our Master Plan of System Improvements. Approved in 1998, the plan included the expansion of the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant and the construction of both the Point of the Mountain Aqueduct (POMA) and the Point of the Mountain Water Treatment Plant.

In 2003, Metro Water broke ground on the Point of the Mountain Water Treatment Plant.

After four years of construction, both the Aqueduct and the Treatment Plant became operational. This milestone marked a new chapter in our ability to serve the community while site improvements at the Little Cottonwood Plant continued through 2009, further strengthening our system.

The Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant Expansion Project involved construction of new raw water facilities, including a new intake structure on Little Cottonwood Creek, a new grit removal and screening facility, a new flash mix facility, and modifications to the existing flocculation basins. The expansion also included the installation of ozone disinfection facilities. All Expansion Projects were completed by June of 2006.

As part of the Onsite Improvement Project at Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant, a 9 MG Finished Water Reservoir and Finished Water Pump Station were constructed. This included a 36-inch diameter pipeline to deliver water to Sandy City’s booster pump station, as well as a 60-inch diameter POMA along the west side of the plant. Altogether, these improvements increased the plant’s treatment capacity by 30 MGD.

In the fall of 2004, construction began on the Point of the Mountain Water Treatment Plant and was completed in 2007. The Point of the Mountain Water Treatment Plant is a key element in the integration of all of the Salt Lake County water systems. The structural design of the plant is able to withstand a serious earthquake event and adheres to established seismic codes.

In 2005, the 12 miles of buried POMA connected the Point of the Mountain Water Treatment Plant with the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant. POMA is able to operate in two directions - either pumping water to or receiving water from the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant. POMA supplies an additional 77 MGD of finished water.

A 2.5-mile-long, 84-inch-diameter raw water pipeline runs from the Provo Reservoir Canal intake structure to the raw water reservoir at the Point of the Mountain Water Treatment Plant. The raw water pipeline was put into service in November 2006. Other important pieces of the project include the 15000 South pipeline extension and other miscellaneous improvements to Sandy City's water system.

The Bureau of Reclamation completed the transfer of title for the Salt Lake Aqueduct to Metro Water on October 2, 2006. This title transfer, which provides Metro Water with ownership and control of the pipeline and its related facilities, took more than four years of efforts by the Bureau of Reclamation, Metro Water, the Provo River Water Users Association, and other key stakeholder groups.

This milestone moment ran parallel to the laboratory expansion at the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant. The project’s purpose was to accommodate a sample load increase of approximately 100 to 150 percent, due to staff performing tests for our member cities.

To top off this season of improvements, we launched the Terminal Reservoir Replacement Project in 2011 to address new seismic standards.

In 2015, we completed the Provo River Aqueduct, formerly known as the Provo Reservoir Canal. We also experienced record-low snowpack and stream flows, challenging our water storage and carryover capacity.

Still, a bright spot emerged in the successful completion of the Terminal Reservoir Replacement Program. This complex project involved sequencing the construction of 48.8 million gallons of new storage while maintaining full service to Salt Lake City.

Metro Water has since constructed two surface infiltration basins, five monitoring wells, and one injection basin at the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Project, also known as the Managed Aquifer Recharge Project. We began the Cottonwoods Connection Project in 2024 and are quickly following with the beginning of the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant Rebuild.

As we continue to grow and plan for the future, the next decade is forecasted to be just as busy as ever with the completion of the Cottonwoods Connection and the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant Rebuild, as well as our next milestone: 100 years of business.

Metro Water's sources of funds are from water sales, property taxes, and assessments.

Water sales account for 49% of Metro Water's revenue and are used for operations and maintenance costs. Assessments account for 25% of the revenue. These assessments are tied to the Metro Water Project. These assessments are paid by Salt Lake City and Sandy City.

Property Taxes account for 23.5% of Metro Water's revenue and are used to fund capital projects such as the repair and replacement of aging infrastructure. Property taxes provide a mechanism for revenue fairness.

For example, properties to be developed pay a fair share of water infrastructure costs. The Cottonwoods Connection project is an example of a capital project that improves the reliability of the water conveyance system in the event of an earthquake. More information on this project can be found on its home page.