Our facility tours are a great way for schools, organizations and individuals to learn about what it takes to provide utilities to our community. Tours can be tailored to fit the specific needs of the school or organization.
Please include in the "special needs" section of the registration form if you are studying or interested in specific topics of the requested plant.
To book a tour, please read our tour and security policy below and then complete the registration form at the end of this page.
Outage Notice
The Front Range Power Plant will be on a scheduled outage April 1-30, 2010. The Martin Drake and Ray Nixon Power Plants will accommodate tours during this period.
Tour Policy
- Our policy is to ensure the safety of employees, visitors and facilities. Each tour takes approximately one and a half hours. Please read the following information carefully.
We offer tours to Colorado educational institutions and organizations (i.e. schools, colleges, boy/girl scout troops) and individual customers. - Public tours of Mesa Water Treatment Plant and Las Vegas Wastewater Treatment Plant are offered on Thursdays between 8 and 10 a.m. and 1 and 3 p.m. Tours are not offered during weeks in which we observe holidays. These tours are limited to a maximum of 30 people.
- Tours of Martin Drake Power Plant, Front Range Power Plant and Ray D. Nixon Power Plant are offered on Tuesdays between 8 and 10 am. and 1 and 3 pm. Tours are not offered during weeks in which we observe holidays. Due to safety concerns, these tours are limited to a maximum of 20 people.
- Public tours are booked on a first request basis and require a minimum of three weeks advance notice.
- Minimum age is nine years old or currently enrolled in fourth grade for all tours.
- Schools must provide one adult chaperones for every 10 children (minimum).
- Organizations requesting a tour must provide a list of names of all tour attendees five working days prior to the tour. All adults (whether with a school group, other organization, or individually) must provide their home address and phone number. Adults (over the age of 18) must also provide government issued photo identification (i.e. driver's license, military ID) upon arrival. If visitors show up for a tour and their names are not on the list or they do not have appropriate identification, they will not be permitted to tour the facility.
- No backpacks, briefcases, cameras, cell phones, video recording devices, etc. are allowed in any facility.
- Appropriate dress, which includes long pants, closed-toed walking shoes, and clothing/accessories for expected weather, is mandatory for all tours. Due to safety concerns, visitors with inappropriate dress will not be able to tour the entire operational facility. We provide additional safety equipment, when required, to tour a facility (i.e. hard hats, safety glasses, ear protection).
- All tour participants must remain under the control and guidance of the tour guide. Any person or group deviating from the guided tour will be escorted from the facility.
- Tour participants must adhere to all safety and site-specific requirements of each facility. Failure to follow safety requirements will terminate the tour.
- Special requests are considered on an individual basis, including persons with physical disabilities and requests to visit facilities other than those listed above. Tours outside the designated hours will not be considered during winter months.
- We reserve the right to cancel and/or deny any request.
Security Policy
We have implemented a Security Threat Management Plan that aligns with the National Homeland Security Advisory System. Our mission is to provide a secure environment for our community and employees by ensuring utility infrastructure is protected through effective security planning. When the security threat level for the nation, the community of Colorado Springs and/or Colorado Springs Utilities is raised to Security Threat Level Orange or Red, we will cancel all tours until the threat level is lowered to yellow or below.
