MINERAL WELLS, Texas — Local officials expressed growing frustration Wednesday over new delays in the Turkey Peak Reservoir project, with one pointing to recent actions by newly elected HD60 State Representative Mike Olcott’s office as hindering the process to completion.
The project which is already carrying $97 million in debt, hit a snag in early January when Representative Olcott’s office requested a meeting with TxDOT officials and water stakeholders. The meeting pertained to the planned inundation of a portion of State Highway FM 4 – a detail that has been part of the project’s discussion since 2007 according to water district officials.
According to information given by the water districts’s legal counsel Rhett Warren during their December 20th board meeting, the usual procedure for TxDOT in these projects is to sell the land to the district at an appraised market value. Warren indicated the purchase amount would be in the vicinity of $250,000.
Board members voted unanimously at the December meeting on a resolution giving Huffman authority to execute the purchase of the road and necessary land from TxDOT to have the stretch of road needed for the project.
Although the board seemed confident in the direction of the project, they were still leery of the unknown position of Olcott, and chose to engage the services a legislative tracker to monitor any legislation filed impacting Turkey Peak Reservoir.
“On January 2nd, the district received an invitation from soon to be State Representative Olcott’s staff to attend a meeting with TxDOT and other state elected officials,” Huffman told the joint meeting of Mineral Wells City Council and Palo Pinto County Municipal Water District #1. The meeting, initially scheduled for January 22, was delayed by weather and eventually held January 29th in Austin.
After the meeting notice request from Olcott, along with TxDOTs unwillingness to sign off on the recently presented MOU, Huffman knew it was time to expand his team of experts once again.
The meeting in Austin with Olcott, Senator King, TxDOT & district officials came to a standstill over the land purchase of the four mile stretch of FM 4.
“With the conveyance of the required portions of state highway FM 4 that would be inundated to be ultimately decided at a higher level at TxDOT, the meeting adjourned,” stated Huffman.
Also adding to the project’s delays, Olcott’s team raised questions in January about the legality of the District’s bidding process for the general contractor of the reservoir project, citing it wasn’t listed in local newspaper publications. (Turkey Peak already has five prequalified general contractors via an industry wide listing service of government contracts and requests for bid proposals.
Facing these complaints, and out of an abundance of caution, the water district opted to restart the bidding process to include local newspaper notices despite knowing there were not any local qualified contractors.
“Delays only mean one thing and delays mean higher water bills for our customers,” council member Beth Watson said. “I remember when this project was under a hundred million dollars, at least so we thought, and now we’re in $97 million in debt and counting.”
The timing of these delays comes just as Governor Greg Abbott emphasized water infrastructure as a top priority. Huffman noted that during Sunday’s State of the State address, Abbott acknowledged “water supplies in Texas are drying up, causing devastating impacts on local communities, agricultural, and other industries.”
“The governor outlined seven emergency items for the 89th legislative session to undertake with investments in water infrastructure being in his top three,” Huffman said, expressing confidence that state support would help resolve current obstacles. “Everything is solvable.”
Backstory
The Turkey Peak Reservoir project has been part of the State’s Water Plan for this region of the Brazos River Basin since the early 2000’s and has not only been permitted by the necessary federal and state agencies, it has been funded with a $200 million low-interest loan by the Texas Water Development Board.
City Council approved water rate hikes in 2023 for water customers to help pay for the construction of the much needed reservoir which will almost double water supply capacity for the district when it’s completed.
The 146% increase in water rates were met with displeasure which created pushback by some critical of the reservoir.
A small group of water rate hike protesters aligned themselves with then candidate Mike Olcott and voiced their concerns about the water situation.
While campaigning to unseat former State Representative Glenn Rogers, Olcott block walked the City with the disgruntled group and campaigned on “looking into Turkey Peak” and the lowering water rates.
The efforts of the group eventually led to the recall of longtime Councilman Doyle Light, who championed the conversation about Turkey Peak for years as it became evident the community was in dire need of critical infrastructure improvements and water security.
Mike Olcott successfully unseated pro-Turkey Peak incumbent Rogers in the HD60 State Representative race, leaving many local leaders unsure of Olcott’s position about the reservoir and asking could the change in leadership hinder construction?
Mineral Wells Area News has reached out to Representative Olcott as well as Senator Phil King inquiring if they are in support of Turkey Peak Reservoir. Olcott did not respond to any of our email inquiries but King’s staff responded to an email but didn’t provide a response to the question.
Mineral Wells City Councilman Kyle Kelly, also disappointed in the recently announced delays, expressed concern about the lack of support from newly elected officials, asking during the Austin meeting if any assistance had been offered to expedite the roadblock with TxDOT.
Huffman responded, “Since that meeting a week ago, I can tell you my office has received no phone calls from our officials, asking if we need help.”
Councilwoman Beth Watson directly addressed what she characterized as deliberate obstruction: “The trail of evidence points right to representative Olcott and his team. The customers of the above cities should be very concerned about his effort to stop the citizens of our area from having water that’s adequate for our future.”
She further warned of potentially broader implications. “Mr. Olcott’s office has stated intentions of attempting to separate the city from its water district. This unwanted action flies in the face of local control, and makes his claim to support lowering property taxes highly suspect,” Watson said. “The water district has ad valorem taxing authority, as well as $97 million in debt today. I am not sure that the surrounding areas are interested in sharing this burden.”
In response to these recent challenges, the water district board voted unanimously to hire Austin-based Hillco Partners, a transportation lobbying firm, for $150,000 over a one-year period.
District legal counsel Rhett Warren explained the firm’s selection was based on their transportation specialty and strong recommendations from multiple sources. Warren also indicated the district is considering bringing a water lobbyist onboard as well.
Huffman says they are following the formalized processes through TxDOT to finalize a pool MOU and working on the next step which is the appraisal process.
“We luckily use a TxDOT approved appraiser ourselves. We are about 5 to 7 days out from having their appraisal in, which all this gets packaged up and sent to TxDOT which eventually makes its way up to the transportation committee,” explained Huffman.
Mayor Regan Johnson explained that the transportation committee is part of the process necessary for legally abandoning the portion of FM 4. She also noted that it is not out of the ordinary for a TxDOT road to be affected by a water improvement project.
“Palo Pinto County is blessed with an abundance number of roads. What we are not blessed with is an adequate water supply of safe and reliable drinking water,” stated Huffman.
The Turkey Peak Reservoir project represents a crucial component of water security for Palo Pinto County as well as for economic development in the area. The delays could affect multiple communities in the region, including Mineral Wells, Graford, Santo, Millsap and others who buy water from the City.
The length of the project delay is unknown at this time and will have to work its way through the political process according to the district. Conservative estimates indicate the TxDOT issue could take up to a year to resolve.
Councilman Beth Watson is encouraging all water customers to reach out to Representative Olcott and let him know the importance of Turkey Peak Reservoir to Palo Pinto County. Contact Representative Olcott here!