# New Construction Underground Utilities in Denver

On a new build the underground work is not one task, it is a sequence with inspections between each step. Denver Sewer and Water installs water, sewer, and storm service on builder schedules, with taps coordinated against the authority that has jurisdiction.

- Water, sanitary sewer, and storm service.
- Tap coordination with the utility of record.
- Sequenced to the construction schedule.
- Inspection ready installation and backfill.
- Custom homes, infill, and small commercial.

## Builders Lose Weeks Underground, Not Above It

Underground utilities sit at the front of the critical path. A tap that is not authorized in time stops framing, not just digging, because occupancy is gated on service that was supposed to be installed months earlier.

The sequence is unforgiving. Application, fee payment, authorization, locate, excavation, installation, inspection, backfill, and restoration each have to complete in order, and skipping ahead usually means uncovering finished work for an inspector.

Most delay we see traces back to one thing: the application went in after the schedule was already set. Utility review timelines are not negotiable by the contractor, so the application date has to be planned backward from the framing date.

- A water tap and service line to the meter location.
- A sanitary sewer tap and lateral to the building stub.
- Storm drainage connection where the site plan requires it.
- A fire service line and its own tap on qualifying buildings.
- Abandonment of any existing service on a scrape and rebuild.

## Who Authorizes and Who Installs

Denver Sewer and Water is a private contractor. We are not Denver Water or the City and County of Denver. We do not issue permits, set tap fees, or approve service. The utility with jurisdiction does all of that.

What we do is the physical work and the coordination around it: preparing what the application needs from the contractor side, scheduling against the authorization date, performing the tap and installation, and being ready when the inspector arrives.

On a scrape and rebuild there is usually a second obligation people forget. The existing service has to be properly abandoned at the main, and that step carries its own permit and inspection.

- Authority: issues the tap permit and sets every fee.
- Authority: inspects and accepts the connection.
- Contractor: performs the tap, installation, and backfill.
- Contractor: schedules locates and protects existing utilities.
- Contractor: restores surface to the standard required.

## How New Construction Underground Is Sequenced

1. **Plan Backward From Framing** The application date is set from the date service is needed, not from the date the site is clear, because utility review time belongs to the authority and not to the schedule.
2. **Locate Before Excavation** Existing utilities are located and marked, and where the site is congested we expose them with hydro excavation rather than a bucket.
3. **Install and Hold for Inspection** Service is installed to the required bedding and depth, then left open for inspection. Nothing is backfilled ahead of acceptance.
4. **Backfill, Compact, Restore** After acceptance the trench is backfilled and compacted to spec and the surface goes back to the standard the jurisdiction requires.

## What Drives New Construction Underground Cost

Distance from the main and depth of the main set most of the excavation cost. A long service run under a street is a different project from a short run across a lot.

Site congestion is the second driver. Existing utilities in the path mean careful exposure rather than open digging, and that is measured in hours.

Tap fees, plant investment fees, and permit fees are charged by the authority with jurisdiction, not by us. We confirm current figures with that authority for your address rather than quoting from memory.

## Frequently asked questions

**How early should the tap application go in?**

Earlier than most schedules assume. Review and authorization timelines belong to the utility with jurisdiction, and they do not compress because a build is behind. We recommend working backward from the date service is required and applying against that.

**Can you install before the permit is issued?**

No. The physical connection cannot be made until the authority authorizes it. We can complete site preparation and staging in advance, but the tap itself waits for the permit.

**Do we need to abandon the old service on a scrape?**

In nearly all cases yes. An existing service left live at the main is a liability and jurisdictions require it to be properly killed and inspected. That is a separate permitted step from the new tap.

**Do you set the tap fees?**

No. Every fee on a tap project is set by the authority with jurisdiction. Denver Sewer and Water is a private contractor and is not Denver Water or the City and County of Denver.

## Related Methods, Materials, and Municipal Process Pages

- [Sanitary Sewer Connection for New Construction](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/taps/sanitary-sewer-connection-new-construction) Sequencing the sewer connection inside a new build schedule.
- [Denver Water Tap Installation](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/taps/denver-water-tap-installation) Who authorizes a water tap, who physically makes the connection, and how the two fit together.
- [Sewer Tap Installation](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/taps/sewer-tap-installation) Connecting a property to a sanitary sewer main, from permit through inspection.
- [Abandonment and Cut-and-Cap Requirements](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/taps/abandonment-cut-and-cap-requirements) Properly killing an old service at the main during demolition or replacement.
- [Hydro Excavation](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/methods/hydro-excavation) Water and vacuum digging for safe exposure around live utilities.
- [Commercial Building Lines](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/properties/commercial-building-lines) Underground water, sewer, fire, and storm service for occupied commercial buildings.
- [New Construction Underground](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/properties/new-construction-underground) Water, sewer, and storm installed on a build schedule with inspections in the right order.

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Denver Sewer and Water is a privately owned, licensed and insured plumbing contractor. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Denver Water, the municipal water utility, or any government entity. To pay a municipal water bill or reach the public utility, visit denverwater.org.

Source: https://www.denversewerandwater.com/properties/new-construction-underground