Leadership

Metro Water Recovery is guided by the leadership of our Chief Executive Officer and the Board of Directors, who represent 23 cities, counties, and special districts throughout the Denver metro area.

Guidance from the Board of Directors helps support our mission of protecting the region’s health and environment by cleaning water and recovering resources.  

Northern Treatment Plant Outfall

Welcome to Metro Water Recovery!   

Sarah Niyork chair of the board

Metro Water Recovery was established in 1961 as a cost-effective, regional solution to wastewater treatment in the growing metropolitan area. Today, we are the largest treatment provider in the Rocky Mountain region, serving 2.2 million people across more than 800 square miles. We are charged with the critical mission of protecting the region’s health and environment by cleaning water and recovering resources.  

Each day, our hard-working and dedicated staff ensures 130 million gallons of water are treated and returned to the South Platte River for the next user while resources from the wastewater are recovered and reused.  We have developed a culture to continuously identify new, cutting-edge technologies and processes for the benefit of the customers we serve, the protection of our environment and the advancement of our industry. We are nationally recognized as a leader in treatment, technology and innovation. At Metro Water Recovery, our business is clean water.

Metro Water Recovery is committed to resource optimization and sustainability and this commitment is underscored in our 2023 Strategic Plan. As identified in our Strategic Plan, Metro stands on three foundational pillars which are interconnected and essential to Metro’s vision to be a leader, an innovative clean water partner and a great place to work. These pillars guide Metro’s direction and decision making.   With organizational values in Excellence, Collaboration, Integrity and Inclusion, our focus is on people: those we serve in our communities, and those who choose to embrace the public service work at Metro.  

It’s an honor to Chair the Board of Directors of Metro Water Recovery, and I am proud to be a part of this dynamic and forward-thinking organization. I hope you take the time to explore the pages of our website and learn about the many aspects of Metro.   Whether you are doing business with Metro or just wanting to learn more about us, the Board of Directors and staff appreciate your time. Thank you for visiting.   

Sarah Niyork, Chair of the Board 

Cleaning Water and Recovering Resources  

William J. "Mickey" Conway

The professionals at Metro Water Recovery work relentlessly to achieve our mission—to protect the region’s health and environment by cleaning water and recovering resources.  As CEO, I am honored to lead a world-class staff dedicated to sustaining the high quality of life we enjoy along the Front Range.  Clean water is a foundation of health and life in our region, and we are committed to tackling the never-ending challenge of managing our precious water resources. 
 
It is also a privilege to lead this organization at this time in the organization’s history. For over a half century, we have been pioneers in sustainability.  The water we receive and renew is returned to the river to replenish the watershed.  It sustains river life and is used for drinking water, agriculture, and recreation.  The resources we recover from the renewal process are used to grow food,  power our operations, and be a source of heat for the community. 
 
Now we face new challenges.  The Front Range population is growing exponentially and the need for clean water has never been more critical.   When this organization was formed, we were at the end of the water cycle; now we are at the center of the water cycle. Being leaders in the clean water industry has never been more important to the two million people we serve.
 
With environmental concerns increasing, telling the story of who we are as guardians of the river has never been more important.  We have always had the good fortune as an organization to be able to adapt, innovate, and collaborate to ensure future generations can rely on the essential public service we provide.  Now we need to elevate ourselves as thought leaders and educators on the important work we do, which is why we strategically decided to embark on a name and logo change as part of a strategic effort to increase our visibility and leverage a strong brand at the local, state, and national levels.  
 
Even as we prepare for the future, we focus on the critical work at hand.  We have the smartest, most dedicated people in the business, a Board and membership which supports and pushes us to be better, and a Strategic Plan to guide us.  Together those elements work to protect our communities every minute, every day, all year long.  As the CEO of Metro Water Recovery, I am honored to be a part of this critical work.

William J. “Mickey” Conway, CEO

Metro includes 65 cities and special districts, 23 of which have voting representation on the Board of Directors.  We call these 23 governments Member Municipalities (listed below). Representation is based on the population within each Member Municipality, with one Director for every 75,000 or fraction thereof. 


Sarah Niyork
Sarah Niyork

Chair 

Marena Lertch
Marena Lertch

Chair Pro Tem

Del Smith
Del Smith

Secretary

Janet Kieler
Janet Kieler

Treasurer


Alameda Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Vacancy

Applewood Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Cody Berg

City of Arvada 

Represented by:
Sharon Israel and Craig Kocian

City of Aurora 

Represented by:
Greg Baker, Nadine Caldwell, James DeHerrera, Bob Roth, Bob LeGare, Marena Lertch

Bancroft-Clover Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Del Smith 

Berkeley Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
John Chavez 

City of Brighton 

Represented by:
Clint Blackhurst

Crestview Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Michael Barrett

City & County of Denver 

Represented by:
Travis Bogan, Mary Gearhart, Andrew Johnston, Janet Kieler, Doug Lazure, Thomas Roode, Peter Spanberger, Mary Beth Susman, Jennifer Williams, and Ronald Younger 

East Lakewood Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Deborah Crisp 

City of Fort Lupton

Represented by:
Charles Miller 

Fruitdale Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Martin Majors 

City of Lakewood 

Represented by:
Laura Kroeger and Greg Sekera 

North Pecos Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Dennis Towndrow 

North Table Mountain Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Jamie Miller

North Washington Street Water & Sanitation District

Represented by:
George Mazzotti, Jr.

Northwest Lakewood Sanitation District 

Represented by:
G. Clark Davenport 

Pleasant View Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
David Councilman 

South Adams County Water & Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Sarah Niyork 

City of Thornton 

Represented by:
Josh Redman and Scott Twombly 

City of Westminster 

Represented by:
Curt Aldstadt

Westridge Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Joan Iler 

Wheat Ridge Sanitation District 

Represented by:
Joe Drew