MCUD says scaled-back treatment plant will serve jail and Greenwood ISD but project faces roughly $4.5–$5 million shortfall

Rodney Rhodes, executive director of the Midland County Utility District, told the County Commissioners Court that the utility scaled its originally planned 1,000,000-gallon-per-day treatment plant to 500,000 gpd to reduce costs and match near-term demand for the new jail and Greenwood Independent School District campus.

Rhodes said total construction is currently estimated at $31,000,000. "We've awarded $19,000,000 in construction contracts primarily for well-field development, above-ground storage and RO treatment packages," he said, and that roughly $12,000,000 in remaining bid packages will be awarded soon. MCUD reported about $26,500,000 in cash on hand and said it is roughly $4.5–5,000,000 short of the scaled construction estimate when change orders and contingencies are considered.

Rhodes told the court the scaled plant includes a 500,000-gpd facility capable of meeting the jail's modeled need of about 150,000 gpd and the Greenwood ISD campus need of about 100,000 gpd, leaving some reserve capacity for future county or district growth. He said Greenwood ISD will fully fund the transmission line from the treatment facility to its new campus, so that line will not reduce MCUD's construction budget.

Asked about timing, Rhodes said the project is moving forward and estimated treated water would be available when the jail opens in early 2026. He said MCUD will rely on RO skid rentals for treatment capacity in the near term (paid from a 3-cent maintenance and operations tax) and would probably purchase permanent skids later if the district can afford them.

Rhodes described financing options should the district go back to voters, saying MCUD intends to target the Texas Water Development Board for low-interest loans and that another bond election would likely occur in November rather than a low-turnout May election. "One of the lessons learned about the May election was the low voter turnout," he said. "Better communication ... is going to be the key."

Commissioners asked whether county facilities or schools would get priority for the additional capacity; Rhodes replied that county facilities and Greenwood ISD would be the priority customers. He said the board has decided not to sell MCUD-treated water to an existing private utility in the corridor.

The update concluded with Rhodes thanking county staff and offering to return with progress reports as the project advances.