Megan Navarro
SAN MARCOS — Following apprehension from several members of the community, the Hays County Commissioners Court approved the reappointment of Scott Roberts to the West Travis County Public Utility Agency (WTCPUA) Board of Directors at its Tuesday, July 28, meeting.
The public utility serves an approximate 225 square-mile area that includes 260 miles of pipeline, 10 pump stations, 11 pressure planes and two elevated storage facilities, according to its website. The agency itself was created through the adoption of concurrent ordinances by three participating agencies, including Hays County.
An item to reappoint Roberts, who currently serves on the WTCPUA board as the president and a representative of Hays County, was brought before the commissioners court July 28.
However, several members of the public, including Rick Brown, general manager of the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation (DSWSC), took to the stand or submitted written comments to share their disagreement of the reappointment.
“I think the people of Dripping Springs, for the lack of a better word, are thirsty and they have been in drought stage four for about four years now. I'm hoping to get some new representation on the [WTCPUA] board,” Brown said. “The people want to irrigate. The people want to fill their pools. The people want to live their lives without such a restriction that we've been facing. We've been doing an excellent job keeping it under the limitations placed upon us, but … the people need help.”
According to resident Charles Busby, Roberts has been in the position for “far too long” and has shown hostility toward the water corporation “stating that one of our board members at DSWSC should just sell to the WTCPUA, while ensuring more than adequate water be made available to development in Driftwood using both WTCPUA water to the city of Dripping Springs and possibly illegal abuse of groundwater. He's shown little if any concern for neighboring water users.”
Driftwood resident Susan Cook agreed that Roberts, who has been serving on the board since its inception in 2012, should not be reappointed. The WTCPUA controls the water supply for tens of thousands of Hays County residents, Cook continued, and it’s a major decision maker for where water pipelines are built.
“The WTCPUA puts its customers under frequent water restrictions, due to their infrastructure being insufficient and not well-maintained. Their customers are restricted to indoor water use only. The water leakage is a serious concern, as are who they choose to supply water to, like the Driftwood Golf Course by way of the city of [Dripping Springs], for whom they are sole provider,” she said.
Cook also claimed a conflict of interest, in which Roberts is allegedly a “major landholder and business associate” in several enterprises in the area that are served by the WTCPUA.
Resident Laurel Trevino-Murphy echoed Cook’s claims that appointing a commercial property developer to oversee public utility infrastructure, especially that pertaining to water, is a conflict of interest.
“Appointing a property developer to oversee the public utility agency that potentially could import water from Travis County to serve various commercial enterprises in Hays County could favor his private business interests over the public good,” Trevino-Murphy emphasized.
Beginning the discussion was commissioner Walt Smith, who also serves on the WTCPUA Board of Directors and is in support of the reappointment of Roberts. He explained that appointments of all members of the board are not solely approved by the commissioners court, rather all parties — Hays County, city of Bee Cave and Travis County Municipal Utility District No. 5 — have to support and approve it.
He went on to clarify some sentiments that were said in public comments, noting the following:
• He has seen Roberts recuse himself at least 20-30 times on discussions related to the Driftwood development.
• Roberts is not an owner in the golf course — later clarifying that Roberts sold it as raw property
• WTCPUA does not directly sell water to the golf course — the business has a living unit equivalent contract with the city of Dripping Springs, which then sells water to it
• Every customer, whether residential or commercial, has to abide by the same curtailments in a drought
“I think it's absolutely egregious to attack a citizen of our county who is a multigenerational citizen of this county and has truly brought success and economic development to our area, who employs hundreds of people in our area, pays literally tens of thousands of dollars in property taxes because they live here and they chose to build their business here,” Smith said. “I think we should encourage people to do that here. They should want to build that business here. They should want to be property owners here and they should want to raise their families here and be successful here and to try to degrade or speak down to them because of that … I think it's just sad.”
Commissioners Debbie Ingalsbe and Michelle Cohen stated that there could be a conversation held regarding term limits for all boards.
“... I've heard of other concerns throughout the county with other appointments that this body makes and so, I just feel that if we are going to do that then we need to look at every entity that we appoint people to and see if that is what this court wants to do and maybe it is the right thing to do to give other people an opportunity,” Ingalsbe said. “But until we do, I think that I am supportive of the appointment and then, we look at this holistically and go from there.”
After hearing disdain from some members of the public that the item was placed on the consent agenda during multiple meetings, the court also questioned that decision.
County administrator Kandice Boutté explained that typically, those appointments are put on the consent agenda, unless the commissioners court explicitly states that it wants to pull the item or give direction on having it in the miscellaneous section.
The reappointment was approved 3-2, with Becerra and Cohen dissenting, however, it is not final until all entities vote to approve.
To listen to the full discussion, visit www.hayscountytx.gov/189/Court-Meetings-Livestream.
