McLennan County approves master engineering agreement with LEN for water projects and Central Texas Water Alliance work

McLennan County commissioners on Tuesday authorized a master engineering and consulting services agreement with Lockwood, Andrews & Newnham to centralize water and wastewater engineering tasks and speed project work.

The master agreement creates a contract framework under which LEN will propose separate work orders for specific projects — from ARPA‑funded water improvements to tasks for the newly created Central Texas Water Alliance and the McLennan County Water Resources Group.

Why it matters: County leaders said the agreement will let the county move faster on technical work that supports groundwater planning, water availability, treated supplies from Lake Waco, wastewater projects and ARPA‑required deliverables. Commissioners emphasized the county’s convening role for rural water systems and municipalities in the region.

Tom Ray of LEN told the court the master agreement is intended to avoid repeated full contracting steps for each task and allow LEN to return with defined scopes and costs as work arises. “We’ve got an overlay contract that we can operate under, and we’re able to move pretty quickly on these issues as they come up,” Ray said.

County Judge and commissioners discussed priorities including conjunctive use in eastern McLennan County, arsenic reduction efforts that involve the City of Waco, coordination with the Brazos River Authority and concerns about potential contamination in the Bosque River watershed related to nearby dairy operations. The county said LEN will develop work orders that will be presented to the court for approval before any money is spent under the master agreement.

The motion to approve the master agreement passed with a second and voice vote. No cost was associated with the agreement itself at the time of approval; commissioners said individual work orders will include cost estimates and return for court consideration.