The City of Rockdale is pivoting in a slightly different direction on its massive water plan after some potentially positive changes were communicated from the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB).
Meeting Tuesday in regular session at City Hall, council members heard Bob Lane of KSA engineers outline dropping some options in the water treatment side of the ambitious plan which seeks to rid the city of its legendary red water problem once and for all.
He said about 47-percent of the treatment cost estimates were being lowered, with expenditures going from $26.4-million to $13.9-million.
It’s complex, but there’s a reason.
APPROACH—City Manager Chris Whittaker said the original approach to the water and sewer system overhauls—with a combined price tag of approximately $63-million—was for the city to receive a $400,000 grant from the TWDB and approximately $10-million in below market rate loans.
“We initially were going to use that $10-million for design and had the initial raise in water rates to show the state we were committed to the approach,” Whittaker said.
“But, now the state not only wants to see us moving forward on the design but also on an actual project,” he said. “So these moves were made to get moving on the water treatment project.”
Changes made include dropping a new water tower from the plan and opting to renovate an existing tower and dropping the delivery volume into the system from 5 million gallons per day to 4 million, he said.
“The potentially positive side is that the state now may extend that low-interest loan offer up to $26-million instead of $10-million,” Whittaker said.
In December, the council may decide whether to accept an offer to purchase water from an outside company as part of the new plan.
“We are still going to continue with more water rate increases,” Whittaker said. “But the amount of those increases is yet to be determined. A number of factors will impact those eventual rates,” he said.
SETTLEMENT—Council members met with their attorney in executive session and returned to open session to okay a $75,000 “settlement” with Central Road & Utility in connection with a lawsuit over a water line extension to the Rockdale Industrial Park.
“Basically it means we are paying them money held back which we still owed them,” Whittaker said.
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