Campus Master Plan
Historic District Tour
Power House (1909)
A facility to provide heat, electricity, and hot water to the campus community was completed in 1910 at the east edge of campus. It was adjacent to the Colorado and Southern railroad tracks, which cut through the university until 1932. A siding provided access to coal storage sheds.
Built of sandstone in a Collegiate Gothic style similar to Macky Auditorium, the Power House provided electricity until the 1924 Valmont Plant began servicing the entire Boulder Valley. Fuel oil replaced coal and was, in turn, replaced by natural gas.
In the early 1950s, the ten-story smokestack, long a Boulder landmark, was removed. In 1993, the structure was retrofitted as a cogeneration facility, using modern technology to produce electricity as a by-product in the production of steam heat and chilled water.
With an eye to aesthetics, the roof superstructure was clad in black glass and large iron gates were designed at the entrance to an outdoor equipment area.
