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January 12, 2010--Longtime Denver Water chief Chips Berry to retire (Denver Post)

Longtime Denver Water manager Chips Barry announced Monday that he will retire this spring — and board members are mobilizing to hunt for a successor. Barry said he plans to spend more time on his farm in Hawaii, where he produces macadamia nuts, coffee and honey. Running Denver Water "is a big, public, visible, high-power job. I've been here a long enough time that, I think, I should move on and let somebody else do it," he said. Since 1991, Barry, 65, has led Denver Water through dealings with other water suppliers, efforts to improve delivery systems, a major drought and negotiations to divert water from the Western Slope. During his tenure, the utility implemented a conservation program, built a recycled-water distribution system and invested millions of dollars in treatment facilities for its 1.3 million customers. "Part of his legacy is his wit, sense of humor," said Penfield Tate, president of the Denver Board of Water Commissioners. "His style and his easygoing manner really helped set the groundwork for a number of cooperative ventures between Denver and its suburban neighbors and Denver and the Western Slope."

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