Lift station issues continue to threaten leasing of waterfront apartments

Problems continue with a sewer lift station that has caused strife between the city and the developer of Lake Villas Luxury Apartments, the waterfront complex off the Loop 567 extension that has been sitting empty for two years.

A discussion about the lift station and the developer’s request to lease a few of the buildings while working to resolve challenges took place at the City Council’s regular meeting on Dec. 21.

Ongoing issues that include groundwater infiltration at the lift station on East Pearl Street by the Hilton Garden Inn and the Waterview senior living facility is threatening Gold Creek Homes’ ability to meet the city’s requirements before its Facilities Improvement Agreement (FIA) expires in mid-February.

The City Council has renewed the FIA multiple times.

Gold Creek Homes’ mixed-use development includes 250 residential units and commercial lots between the apartment complex and the loop extension.

There is a lift station on site, but off-site improvements are needed to the city’s “Lift Station 2.”

According to the city, capacity at that lift station needs to be increased to handle the Gold Creek Homes development.

The developer is tasked with increasing the lift station’s capacity, but Public Works Director Rick Crownover stated at a council meeting in September that the city incentivized the project in several ways, including by making improvements to Lift Station 2.

At the Dec. 21 meeting, the council considered a request by Gold Creek Homes to issue a limited temporary Certificate of Occupancy.

Crownover indicated that the lift station on the property appeared able to operate with no problems, and said that the apartment buildings met city code.

However, he said that there were still problems with Lift Station 2 and that there was “a ways to go” in resolving those problems.

Crownover also said that a nearby AT&T line must be addressed by that company and doing so is going to “take some time.”

The public works official said the city has requested that the lift station manufacturer do an inspection because “we have reason to believe it may be damaged.”

Gold Creek Homes representative Dan Williams also addressed the council.

He said that he has installed “seven or eight” lift stations during his career, but Granbury’s Lift Station 2 “is difficult” because of the groundwater infiltration.

He said that the matter is “very frustrating” because a city representative told the company’s engineer in 2017 or 2018 that there was no infiltration.

Williams stated that the company has a 2018 email from the city claiming there was no infiltration when in fact there was. He seemed to infer that the city was responsible for the delay in the company being able to lease its apartments.

Williams said he was told by AT&T that they are still in the early stages of design and indicated that the construction phase for the line would take 4-5 months “once they start mobilizing.”

He told council members that if they want the lift station job finished by mid-February when the FIA expires, the company can do it but that there would be a risk of a “severed AT&T line.”

Williams requested that Gold Creek Homes be allowed to open its leasing office and lease units in two or three of the buildings.

He said that a bypass system is “carrying everything currently” and that Lift Station 2 will not go online until it has been certified.

Mayor Pro Tem Trish Reiner expressed concerns about issuing a Certificate of Occupancy under such conditions and said it would set “a very dangerous precedent.”

The council went into closed session to discuss the matter outside of public view.

Upon reconvening in open session, Reiner made a motion to postpone acting on the request until the council’s meeting on Jan. 18, when Williams could present a progress report on the lift station’s functionality.

Councilman Greg Corrigan seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.