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In 1978, Platte River’s leadership and administrative staff, (20 employees), began working from a new, 25,000 square foot, two-story building located south of Fort Collins. Following an addition in 1980, the building held 54 employees and the 1984 construction of the separate EO building enabled larger staff numbers. Built for the needs of the 1970s and 80s, the headquarters complex housed approximately 150 employees that performed duties necessary to consistently deliver safe, reliable and affordable electricity to each municipal owner.

Aside from noncompliance with modern building codes or requirements by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the original headquarters campus design did not anticipate the organizational growth or need to efficiently manage specialized functions necessary to balance energy produced from renewable and traditional resources along with demands posed by a regional transmission organization.

The new headquarters facility and campus enables staff to work together more efficiently in managing the complex technologies behind a secure and robust 21st Century electrical grid and the critical infrastructure necessary to power and protect our way of life. It provides the community with better access to our region’s energy experts and the policy leaders who guide our cleaner and more diverse energy future. It provides sufficient meeting areas to welcome individuals and groups for energy efficiency programs, information sharing, professional training and collaboration.

The building features 54,000 square feet of working space within a two-story structure. Between 30,000 and 40,000 square feet of workshop, garage, storage and field crew space for Substation and Fleet Maintenance operations, located just northwest of the headquarters building. The energy efficient headquarters features regionally sourced building materials and native landscaping that comprises 80 percent of Platte River’s parcel of land.

The building includes a rooftop solar array, an onsite pond for obtaining and rejecting heat through a geo-exchange mechanical system and participates in the City of Fort Collin’s green energy program to help ensure 100% noncarbon energy use on a year-round basis.

It was designed to reduce energy use by approximately 50% and indoor water use by 30%, and diverted 91% of waste during construction. Additionally, the design and construction of the facility was guided by Colorado State University Institute for the Built Environment and the City of Fort Collins Integrated Design Assistance Program for green building designs.

Platte River’s headquarters also received the Urban Design Award for Architecture from the City of Fort Collins in September 2022.