San Marcos council tables emergency water sale to Kyle, shortens term in revised deal

The San Marcos City Council spent more than three hours debating proposed water agreements with the city of Kyle, ultimately tabling the longer emergency water supply contract and approving a shorter interim arrangement to preserve emergency access while staff completes follow‑up work.

Council members pressed city staff and Kyle representatives on three main points: when and how San Marcos could refuse to open the interconnect during local shortages, the wholesale pricing for treated water, and the length of the contract. Paul Cott, assistant director for water, told council the proposed rate of $6.42 per 1,000 gallons reflects the city’s published wholesale rate; he said the city’s net revenue from prior interconnects has been modest (staff cited roughly $152,000 in total revenue since the arrangement’s inception). Kyle utilities assistant director Tim Sanford said Kyle uses the interconnect only when they face outages or supply failures; Kyle drew…