SAN ANGELO, TX — The Texas Water Development Board approved a request today, April 6, from the City of San Angelo for $13,415,000 in financial assistance related to the Hickory Aquifer project.
The City had previously been approved for a $66 million low-interest loan from the TWDB but adjustments to the loan lowered the amount of the load ti $56,075,000.
As the design progressed, the addition of a low-pressure pump station, complexity in the clearwell construction, and additional pump rework in the existing well field elevated the bids closer to the larger initial loan approval amount. The requested approval for the construction contracts, also on the March 15, 2022, City Council agenda, is approximately $13 million short of the amount allocated in the previously closed loan amount.
In March 2022, the City Council authorized the City Manager to obtain another load from the Texas Water Development Board for an amount not to exceed $14 million. The $14 million amount is to cover financial advisor, bond counsel, and other borrowing costs/fees.
Once completed, the Hickory Aquifer will have the ability to pump up to 10.8 million gallons per day of groundwater from Melvin, Texas, to San Angelo, offering another option to respond to future or continued droughts.
The Texas Water Development Board was established during the 2013 Texas Legislative Session. State Senator Bobby Duncan, who is Charles Perry's predecessor, was instrumental in establishing the fun using $2 billion from the Rainy Day Fund. The TWDB legislation was celebrated in San Angelo with a visit of then-Governor Rick Perry along with Duncan.
In addition to the load approval for San Angelo announced today, the TWDB also awarded:
- $18,110,000 to the Greenbelt Municipal and Industrial Water Authority (Donley County) for a water supply project
- $13,415,000 to the City of San Angelo (Tom Green County) for a water supply and treatment project
- $505,000 to the Greater Texoma Utility Authority on behalf of Gober Municipal Utility District (Fannin County) for water system improvements
- $3,520,000 to the Greater Texoma Utility Authority on behalf of White Shed Water Supply Corporation (Fannin County) for water system improvements
- $3,425,000 to the Lazy River Improvement District (Montgomery County) for wastewater system improvements
- $7,500,000 to the City of Southside Place (Harris County) for a drainage improvement project
In all, these loan approvals totaled $46,475,000 for water, wastewater, and flood projects across Texas.
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