Council accepts three county-held parcels for $15 million drainage project

The El Campo City Council on Sept. 22 approved Resolution R2025-48 to accept three parcels that are currently held in trust by the County of Wharton for use in a planned $15,000,000 drainage improvement project.

City staff displayed the parcels on a meeting screen and said each lot lies along the creek in the project area. Staff told the council the parcels had been placed on a sheriffs sale by the taxing authority and had not been purchased at auction; the taxing agent offered the city an opportunity to acquire the lots for the drainage project without paying purchase price if the council accepted them.

Staff said accepting the parcels now would avoid future purchase costs but would create an ongoing maintenance obligation for the city; exact maintenance costs and scope will depend on the final project design, which has not been completed. Staff described the parcelssizes on the record: one parcel is about 3.35 acres, another is about 1.47 acres and a small triangular parcel is about 0.0813 acres.

Council members discussed the possibility of keeping only needed easements and potentially marketing or disposing of surplus land after the project is completed. A council member noted that one parcel had limited marketability in its current shape and suggested the city could consider transferring small leftover pieces to adjacent property owners to avoid a maintenance burden.

The council moved, seconded and approved the resolution by voice vote; no roll-call tally is recorded in the transcript.