Horrell v. City of Aurora

Horrell v. City of Aurora, 976 P.2d 315 (Colo. App. 1998) involved a water meter pit located on private property that was owned, operated, and maintained by the public entity, a division of this court held that the water meter pit was not part of a "public facility," and therefore immunity was not waived under the GIA. The trial court concluded that Horrell was controlling and dismissed plaintiff's complaint against Ute. The Court addressed waiver of a public entity's immunity under 24-10-106(1)(f) when the entity owned, operated, and maintained a water meter pit located on private property. The division noted that the City & County of Denver v. Gallegos court held that the determinative factor as to whether a water meter pit was a "public water facility" was whether it was operated for the benefit of the public. Thus, because the water meter pit in Horrell only benefited the property on which it was located, the court held that it was not a "public water facility" and that Aurora's immunity had not been waived under 24-10-106(1)(f). The division concluded that, under the rationale of the Gallegos decision, the fact that the water meter pit was owned, operated, and maintained by Aurora was a "distinction without a difference." Horrell v. City of Aurora, supra, 976 P.2d at 316.