Residents tell Hays County commissioners Hays Commons would threaten wells, aquifer and neighborhoods

Dozens of residents addressed the Hays County Commissioner's Court on April 28 saying the Hays Commons proposal threatens local well supply and the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone.

"The variance request ... would create a very high density development over the recharge zone, which jeopardizes the water supply of many of the surrounding residents," said Alana Beatty, a Chaparral Park resident who singled out a request to reduce lot sizes and called for K6 and K7 to be removed from the agenda. Several speakers described wells running dry and cited local dye-trace studies and karst geology as reasons why treated effluent or failure of an irrigation-distribution system could reach sensitive recharge features.

Mayor Lydia Bridal Valdez of the City of Hays told the court there is an active contested case at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality over the project's TLAP (Texas land application permit) and said the concept exhibits showed inconsistent facility placement; she warned that, if approved as proposed, the TLAP would allow about "150,000 gallons of wastewater per day" to be applied near private wells and city supply wells. Residents also submitted hundreds of emailed comments raising the same points and asking that the court not rush the decision.

The court agreed to pause K6 and require additional public notice before reconsideration; legal staff advised that the county's published and mailed notice procedures typically run 30–45 days. Residents said they will continue to press the issue and monitor TCEQ proceedings.