Council postpones vote on second water tower engineering agreement to seek cost comparisons

The Parker City Council on June 17 postponed consideration of Resolution No. 2025-850, an engineering services agreement for a proposed second elevated water tower, after several councilmembers questioned the project estimate and the size of the engineering fee. The motion to postpone carried 3-2 with Councilmembers Halbert and Pilgrim opposed.

Why it matters: The project estimate discussed at the meeting ranged near $7 million (staff cited an estimate of roughly $7M with engineering, testing and related costs raising the total toward $8M). Councilmembers asked for comparative cost data from other recent Texas elevated tank projects, questioned the engineering fee percentage, and sought greater transparency before committing to a qualifications-based selection and engineering contract.

During discussion, technical staff and the city's engineer explained that elevated storage is required by Texas Commission on Environmental Quality rules (an elevated component is needed for system pressure and regulatory storage requirements) and that project costs include structural work, coatings, testing, sitework and engineering services. Councilmember Curcio and others asked staff to gather publicly available cost data for comparable North Texas tanks and return to council for review.

What's next: Council voted to postpone the item and requested staff compile recent public costs of comparable elevated water tanks in the region so council can compare total project and engineering costs before approving the agreement. The item will return after staff's comparative analysis; the postponement vote split 3-2.