A problematic well and (hopefully) its redemption

The Highway 84 well initially cost $1,464,000 and it was operational for about a year before it started giving problems. The main problem is "scale" (calcium salt) buildup. Since then, the City has spent an additional $237,000, for a total of $1,701,000. The well only functioned for a little over a year, and has been sitting dormant for a few years now. But the professional opinion is that for a modest investment (~ $130,000 plus pump repair costs) there is a good likelihood of having a functional well that could produce perhaps 600 gallons per minute (which it produced that first year). At that rate, the well could pay for itself in about 3 years or so. Well water is considered to be both the best and cheapest water for the City to use, since all other water we use is surface water from either from Waco or Belton, and has to be purchased from those municipalities. Interestingly, the water comes out of the well hot, and cools down in the storage tank.

You might also be interested to know that by statute the Woodway water system must be self-supporting; see municipal code Chapter 18, Article IV ("Water"), Sec. 18-74 ("water rate schedule"). That is, it cannot be subsidized by the general budget, though loans can be made and repaid. If you have never looked at the Woodway municipal code, it can be found here.

I'll try to do a comprehensive presentation of the Woodway water system before too long.