Des Moines Water Works CEO Ted Corrigan Announces Retirement

DES MOINES – Des Moines Water Works CEO and General Manager Ted Corrigan has announced his retirement after 35 years of leadership and commitment to ensuring clean, reliable drinking water for central Iowans. 

Corrigan’s retirement is effective July 18. The Des Moines Water Works Board of Trustees voted to hire him as CEO in June 2020. He was the interim CEO for more than a year prior to his hiring and navigated the utility through the Covid-19 pandemic.  

“It has been an honor to work for and to lead an organization as storied as Des Moines Water Works,” Corrigan said. “Our team has always been up to the challenge, and I’m proud of all that has been accomplished. I specifically want to thank the dedicated members of the Water Works team who answer the call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to ensure our customers have the water they depend upon for their daily lives.” 

During Corrigan’s tenure as CEO, he was instrumental in negotiations and the development of a regional model for governance of drinking water production in the Des Moines metro area – Central Iowa Water Works. 

Corrigan also led the utility’s most recent strategic planning initiative, and in 2024, DMWW received the Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Management from the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies. This award recognizes the highest level of excellence in managing and operating a water utility.

“There’s no question Ted Corrigan has left a legacy to the region with his accomplishments and his dedication to the water industry,” DMWW Board Chair Andrea Boulton said. “But, to us, Ted has been a steady hand guiding the utility while still making space for new policies and programs that have made DMWW a trusted and respected organization, both as an employer and a business.” 

With Corrigan at the helm, DMWW enhanced its watershed protection work with new collaborations and unlikely partners committed to improving water quality. This included joining the Central Iowa Cover Crop Seeder Partnership – an alliance with an ag retailer, local governments and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship – to increase the acres of cover crops planted in the source watersheds DMWW depends upon for water supply.

Corrigan, who has been with the utility since 1990, also led the Water Distribution and Water Production departments, contributed to the recovery effort following the historic Flood of 1993, and helped design and oversee projects that included two new water treatment facilities, deep aquifer storage wells, miles of transmission and distribution water main, and the Water Works Park Master Plan that culminated with the construction of the Lauridsen Amphitheater.  

The American Water Works Association (AWWA) awarded Corrigan with the AWWA-Iowa Section’s 2020 George Warren Fuller Award for distinguished service and leadership in the water supply field. The award is given to those who have gone above and beyond in the professional water industry to provide the benefits of water. 

The DMWW Board of Trustees will begin recruitment for a new CEO after their meeting on Feb. 25. The position description and requirements will be posted to https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/dmww.