Mineral Wells Area News

City Manager seeks clarification after letter circulates to residents

MINERAL WELLS, Texas — State Rep. Mike Olcott is calling on the City of Mineral Wells to lower its water rates, but city officials say he has yet to explain how his office reached its conclusions.

In a letter dated March 12 and mailed directly to residents, Olcott wrote,

“Last year, I heard from Mineral Wells residents that they were struggling to pay their water bills after the City Council imposed a 146% increase in the water rate.”

He added, “My staff analyze[d] the rates to determine if that large of an increase was necessary… Our conclusion was that it was significantly higher than necessary.”

The letter did not include any data, sources, or explanation of how the analysis was conducted. It also did not acknowledge the context behind the rate hike or the city’s role in funding the regional Turkey Peak Reservoir project.

City Manager Jason Weeks, who stepped into the role earlier this year, said he has reached out to Olcott’s office to request the data used in the assessment.

“I would love to be able to see the math,” said Weeks during his latest Coffee with City Manager weekly forum. There is a lot of things to make that Olcott and the City do to make sure the math is mathing.”

Weeks said his background is in finance and would like to see the calculations used in the HD60 State Representative’s rate findings.

“Until I get the full analysis, I can’t tell you… I don’t know whether [rates] will go up or go down.”

Weeks said he received a brief reply from Olcott’s staff but no specifics other than the elected official was aware of the communication.

“I sent it to his chief of staff and got a response back that said they receive lots of emails,” he said. “I forwarded it again this morning.”

The Mineral Wells City Council approved the 146% water rate increase in late 2023, following a July 2023 presentation by rate consultants at NewGen Strategies. The hike was part of a five-year plan to fund the development of the Turkey Peak Reservoir by the Water District — a $200 million regional project intended to ensure long-term water security.

Although the plan projected further increases in subsequent years, the council chose not to raise water rates in 2024. Future changes will be reviewed during the annual budgeting process.

Just last week, the Palo Pinto County Municipal Water District No. 1 signed an interlocal agreement with the county to take on the $15 to $20 million reconstruction of Ward Mountain Road.

The rebuilt road will serve as the main route around the lake once portions of FM 4 are inundated upon dam completion. Water district officials have said those additional expenses will likely affect rates moving forward.

Olcott’s letter does not mention city’s infrastructure obligations or the entirety of the population the city’s water source serves. The letter closes with a simple request by Olcott:

“I am asking the City Council to consider lowering the rates.”

Weeks said he is still reviewing all the variables tied to the rate structure before offering any guidance. He also mentioned his upcoming meeting with reps from NewGen to get a foundational understanding of how the rates were calculated.

Weeks discussed the factors of rate setting and explained that NewGen contracts with many communities across the state to help set utility rates for municipalities.

“They go in and they they look at the the revenues coming in, they look at the operational expenses, and they look at the capital improvements as well as your debt to determine what the rates should be,”explained Weeks.

“So I would love to able to get those calculations to look at it, and see if there’s something missing, if there’s something that the city is or maybe NewGen missed. Again, people make mistakes, and so if there’s a way to look at it and see what it could be. I would love to be able to look at it,” Weeks said of Olcott’s rate findings.

“We’ve got a whole bunch of numbers that have to be put together,” he said. “It’s not something that happens overnight.”