Maybe I Was Correct After All

    With an oil pipeline developing a leak upstream, the woes of Lake Alan Henry, a proposed future water source for the City of Lubbock, continues.

    I say proposed because the city has been working for approximately three decades to turn a hardscrabble area of land in Garza County into a lake that will provide water for its residents. Other than spending millions upon millions of citizens’ dollars to create a lake for housing developers, not one drop of water has yet reached the county line.

    The saga began many, many years ago when a bunch of Garza ranchers saw the city-slicker legal team as the suckers they were and convinced the city that the mesquite-covered rough land they owned was worth hundreds of thousands of dollar more than it actually was.

    Then, the city’s expert legal team learned that they did not purchase the mineral rights to the lake, creating a several-year delay in flooding the area until Mayor Windy Sitton could finalize the deal with the Dallas oilman.

    As the lake was being developed, real estate folks from Garza began selling land surrounding the lake and telling potential buyers that they could have lake access, although the city contended that boat docks were highly restricted. Wrong again. Several homeowners, using their friendship with a former Lubbock mayor, were able to succeed in a lawsuit that resulted in their building additional docks.

    The saga continued as the Council hired a former mayor to acquire property rights from Garza to Lubbock for the pipeline that the city contends eventually will bring water from the lake to city faucets. Garza officials, seeing an opportunity to skin the city again, required a financial reward for allowing the pipeline the cross some of its county roads—the first time it had ever charged for this access—and our nutty city fathers ponied up the money.

    Now, following heavy rains in West Texas, a leak in a pipeline upstream from the lake has closed the lake and, although the city is pooh-poohing the news, the prospect of being able to ever drink the water may be in doubt.

    A decade ago I was asked about the possibility of the city ever getting water from Lake Alan Henry and I replied that I thought it would never happen.

    With the progress that had been made at the lake since then, I about had decided I was wrong in that prediction. I still hope that I was, but this latest development doesn’t make me feel very confident.