The Texas Water Company (TWC) is temporarily pausing new service commitments for nine proposed developments in Comal County, citing rapid growth and drought.
“We hear you. We know water availability is a concern, and we want to assure you TWC is taking action,” the company said in a Facebook post directed at customers today. “With Texas facing severe drought and rapid growth, we’re prioritizing reliable service today while securing water for the future.”
The unprecedented move was praised by Comal County Precinct 4 Commissioner Jen Crownover, who represents the north side of Canyon Lake where residents are fighting a permit that would allow Lennar Homes to discharge 600,000 gallons of treated wastewater per day into Canyon Lake for the Broken Cedar Ranch development in the FM 484/FM 306 area.
Crownover told MyCanyonLake.com in 2024 that she’s felt like a broken record for years, advising constituents there’s nothing Commissioners Court can do to slow explosive area growth or protect the county’s dwindling water resources.
“Without a water supply or other utility commitments, for that matter, they cannot move forward with their project proposal to the county,” Crownover said today. “If they would have made it to the county, and once their application was complete, it would have been ministerial for us at that point, and the county would have absolutely no authority to stop or deny them.”
TWC turned off the spigot to nine proposed developments with a combined total of 4,182 lots. Five of those projects in Precinct 1 total 2,334 lots, two projects in Precinct 2 total 638 lots, and two projects in Precinct 4 total 1,210 lots.
In a letter Tuesday advising developers of the decision, TWC said its foremost responsibility is ensuring the reliability of water service for existing customers.
“Given current conditions we must temporarily pause new service commitments to uphold our responsibility to provide customers water when they turn on their faucets and remain in compliance with state regulatory requirements for system redundancy and resiliency,” the utility said. “Like all communities in Texas, we are required to meet regulatory standards from various agencies to ensure we maintain a reliable, sustainable water infrastructure.”
TWC also said it has secured 6,000 acre-feet of new water supply in the FM 1863 area of Comal County for delivery by 2026.
In addition to expanding supply, TWC said it will invest in system interconnectivity to enhance water movement, reduce water loss, and bolster system reliability.
“Our foremost responsibility is to ensure that when our customers turn on their faucets, they have access to reliable water,” said TWC President Aundrea Williams. “We understand the importance of supporting community growth and we are investing in the infrastructure needed to make that possible in a responsible and sustainable way.”
Crownover said she learned in a water meeting last week that 57-88% of the area’s drinking water supply is used by customers to water lawns.
“That, my friends, is not conservation,” she said.
The State of Texas needs to shift its focus from “availability” to “sustainability” and treat water like it does electricity using a grid system.
“Water doesn’t know or care about jurisdictional boundaries, property boundaries, county lines or anything else,” Crownover said. “It is fluid. Some places have more; some places have less. Some have more rain, and some are more drought-prone. Unless we change the way we view and manage water, we are not solving problems.”
TWC, a subsidiary of SJW Group in San Antonio, provides service to approximately 78,000 people through 26,000 water and wastewater service connections in Comal, Blanco, Kendall, Bandera, Medina, Hays, and Travis counties.
