Sen. Charles Perry at LCWCID meeting in Ransom Canyon. Staff photo.
Senator Charles Perry came back from the ongoing legislative session in Austin Friday to address a controversy about McMillan Dam which is between Ransom Canyon and Buffalo Springs.
Perry, at a meeting of the Lubbock County Water Control and Improvement District No. 1, was responding to Lubbock County Commissioner Jason Corley’s threat last week to pull $7 million for dam repairs.
Previous coverage: $7 million Buffalo Springs dam project threatened after questions over how money can be spent
Corley’s threat came after he heard board members questioned if they could use the money for other things. Greg Thornton, interim manager at Buffalo Springs, said that wasn’t accurate. On Friday, the board explained the question was what they could do with any leftover money, which we’ll explain in more detail below.
Corley went so far as to suggest people in Ransom Canyon should sue Buffalo Springs to keep the dam project on track.
Perry agreed with Corley saying money for the dam cannot be redirected but was critical of Corley for suggesting a court battle.
“We don’t encourage lawsuits – a lot of rumors about you need to sue so-and-so to get this done. That ain’t gonna happen on my watch,” Perry said.
Then he continued his comments about getting along.
“The state does not have an active role in this conversation today. But I can say the state can have an active role in Lubbock County tomorrow. So, all I’m saying here is cool it,” Perry added.
“Kiss and make up. Get along, shake hands and move forward. Get on the same page move forward, take the money that you were given … and use it wisely,” Perry said to the board and the crowd of about 50 attending the meeting.
How this happened
Corley held a meeting in Ransom Canyon on Tuesday, April 1. This is when he threatened the funding – a threat he repeated to LubbockLights.com in a story we published Friday, April 4.
“When it made it back to me that they’re talking about spending that money on other things, I told them, I said, ‘I’ll pull those funds. I will pull that money,’” Corley said during the Tuesday meeting, which was recorded on video.
The money comes from ARPA or the American Rescue Plan Act. It came to Lubbock County, which set aside funds for dam repair. Corley cannot pull the funding by himself. He would need support from a majority of the Commissioners Court.
But what about talk of redirecting the money?
In the Friday meeting, board member Doug Parsley, said, “The question – I was president at that time – was if there are surplus monies from the dam leftover, could they be used for Buffalo Springs Lake infrastructure sewer & water? That’s all we asked. That was the only question that was asked.”
Thornton told the board the answer was no. “There was never any attempt to spend it anywhere but on the dam,” Thornton told LubbockLights.com.
Perry also addressed the issue Friday.
“Lubbock County is responsible for how that money is spent. … That money must be spent on the dam. You can’t move it to some other bucket,” Perry said.
“So, what I want to achieve this day in this meeting is to know that those ARPA dollars have to go to the dam. And now it’s time to start. Most importantly in that, it’s got to be spent by December 2026 or the feds call that back,” he said.
Susan Rowley, both a Lubbock County justice of the peace and municipal judge at Buffalo Springs, suggested the timing of the funding threat was tied to the firing of lake manager Brandon Powell.
“Because of the situation with the hiring and firing of some of the people in Buffalo Springs, some people got angry about that and there were threats,” Rowley said in the meeting with Perry.
It was never disclosed why Powell was let go.
Corley told LubbockLights.com last week he had concerns with Powell’s firing.
“Wait ’til you finish the dam. You’re gonna fire him, fire him. That’s your business. But you know, wait until we finish,” Corley said.
Corley denied having a friendship with Powell – saying, “I just know him from being the lake manager. … 7.3 million is a lot more vengeful than I am. We didn’t hang out after work. I’d rather tell my voter I overreacted than did nothing.”
Perry said it’s not his concern if the board replaced the manager.
“Boards have the right to switch out players. I am told there’s a movement to possibly replace the board … I hope that does not go forward,” Perry said.
Perry further explained to LubbockLights.com on Monday there was talk of replacing the board with a river authority, which he said is not even an option and part of the reason he came to the Friday meeting.
“I would just encourage you as a community to set aside any politics. What I would say is both sides need to be involved on status reports. … It is a community job and a community effort. …. This idea of a single control at any level, any purpose, has to stop,” Perry said.
Technically it’s a Buffalo Springs project but Perry said Ransom Canyon, downstream of the dam, should be kept updated on every step of the project.
“Where I see division in that partnership, it concerns me because you stand a lot to lose if you can’t get along well together,” Perry said.
The work and the deadline
Responding to Perry, Ransom Canyon mayor Val Meixner said, “I just want to reiterate what you said and reinforce that we are friends with Buffalo. And we are very supportive of the dam project and want to work hand-in-hand to see that this project continues.”
The board called on the project engineer from Freese and Nichols, Heather Keister, to give an update. Everything is on schedule to meet the ARPA deadline next year, she said.
“The initial concern was seepage. … A certain amount of seepage is normal. But if it starts to pick up particles of the soil from the dam that’s when it can become problematic,” Keister said.
A 2012 letter from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said in part:
“Although there are several items noted in the report, the primary areas of concern include the hydraulic inadequacy of the structure, deterioration of the bridge abutment support beams over the spillway, seepage observed from the spillway sidewalls, [and] pooled water observed in several locations immediately beyond the left downstream side of the dam …”
Thornton and Corley both described the project in our previous story as necessary maintenance but not an imminent emergency.
Keister said, “Some of those regulations have increased. Additionally with more development happening downstream of the dam, it knocked the dam up into the next higher level hazard classification.”
Ransom Canyon City manager Elena Quintanilla is concerned and wants more than just the current project to widen the base of the dam. There is a plan for a phase 2 project to improve the spillway and raise the height of the dam. But no funding yet.
Corley raised concerns about Quintanilla contacting Freese and Nichols.
She said she contacted the firm about a different project but since she was already in a conversation, she made a request concerning McMillan Dam.
“I was asking if there was any way we could get reports that the previous lake manager was sending us. But since he was terminated I wasn’t getting those anymore,” Quintanilla said.
Perry said, “I will continue to search for state support of other monies to repair dams.”
As for a phase 2, Thornton told the board, “They’re planning the safety margins there. It’s a 20-inch rain in 72 hours.”
Keister then added, “It’s what’s called the probable maximum flood. It’s basically Noah’s flood. … Yeah, it’s huge – nothing we’ve ever seen before. But if you’re living downstream of the dam, that would be comforting to know that it’s safe.”
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