City board approves water rights deal

Texarkana Water Utilities Executive Director J.D. Phillips gives a presentation to the Texarkana, Ark., Board of Directors on Monday regarding water supply contracts with Southwest Arkansas Water District at City Hall.
Texarkana Water Utilities Executive Director J.D. Phillips gives a presentation to the Texarkana, Ark., Board of Directors on Monday regarding water supply contracts with Southwest Arkansas Water District at City Hall.

Texarkana, Ark., is expected to enter into two water rights contracts following their approval by the city Board of Directors at its regular meeting Monday.

The agreements with Southwest Arkansas Water District will purchase or reserve for future purchase almost 135 million gallons of Millwood Lake water per day.

One contract purchases more than 35 million gallons per day of the lake's water that was reserved by the city in a 1978 agreement but never used. The new contract has a term of 20 years and will cost more than $1.8 million, an amount the city has accrued in a dedicated fund since 2012, Texarkana Water Utilities Executive Director J.D. Phillips said in a presentation to the board.

In 1978, the city reserved storage space for up to 50 million gallons of water per day in the lake, but it purchased and activated only 15 million gallons of water per day for actual use. The new contract purchases the remaining 35 million gallons per day to meet and protect the city's present and future water resource rights and requirements, according to city records.

Those 35 million gallons per day will be activated for use as needed in increments of 1 million gallons per day. The city will pay no related operational, maintenance, administrative or electric-power costs until the water is used.

The other contract reserves 99.8 million gallons per day for potential purchase through January 2066 at a cost of more than $500,000 a year. The contract assigns 5 million of those gallons per day to the Water District. Those 5 million will fulfill agreements with area farmers, SWAWD Executive Director Steve Nipper said.

In February, the Board of Directors approved a 10 percent increase in Texarkana Water Utilities rates, affecting all commercial and residential water consumers on the Arkansas side, to help defray the cost of the larger contract.

A TWU analysis predicts the rate increase will generate more than $350,000 a year in additional revenue. It will go into effect "as soon as possible" after the city finalizes the water rights contract and will raise each residential customer's monthly water bill by about $2, Phillips said.

The board also adopted a resolution agreeing to divide with Miller County any funds received from the federal Byrne Justice Assistance Grant Program, as is required to ensure eligibility for more than $28,000 in grant money. The Texarkana, Ark., Police Department plans to use its portion of the funds, more than $19,000, to purchase six Motorola APX 6000 portable radios.

In other business, the board approved by consent a resolution authorizing the city Parks and Recreation Department to hold a United States Specialty Sports Association Softball Showcase tournament June 24 to 26.

Mayor Ruth Penney-Bell emphasized such events' positive effects on the city's economy and reputation, and she called for park improvements to attract more of them.

"These sports events bring more people to our town than any other single activity," she said. "Now we need to upgrade our facilities so that we won't let them all go to one side of the city."

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