City joins PUA; OKs plan for playground

Weatherford City Council voted unanimously during its Tuesday, Sept. 22, meeting to join in the formation of the Parker County Public Utility Agency (PUA).

The vote comes after several presentations to City Council and the Municipal Utility Board, as well as to neighboring cities in Parker County over the past few months.

Rick Shaffer, Weatherford’s director of Water Utilities, summarized previous presentations that highlighted the need for the agency and why Weatherford should join in the effort despite not having the immediate need to do so.

‘This process that led us to this point started several years ago primarily due to the number of new private wells that are drilled across Parker County and the overall lack of reliable water supply for the county,” he said.  

Of note is that Parker County drilled the most wells in the state from 2003-2025 with 15,488. Wise County was the next closest at 7,578. Weatherford, specifically, has more than 2,600 of those domestic wells within two miles of city limits.  

Shaffer showed there are 13 neighboring entities who have agreed to join the PUA and have either already adopted resolutions or will be in the coming days. He added that the opportunities and benefits of the PUA are not just for one entity but for all and that it “strengthens our competitiveness for state and federal funding.”

He then talked about next steps if, and when, the PUA is formed, starting with the establishment of by-laws. He also cautioned that with the PUA and bringing in additional water supply, there is a potential for unrestricted development outside of any of the participating cities corporate boundaries. 

“I will also point out that, number one, that risk existed with or without a PUA and, also, I believe that risk is less now after the withdrawal of those three participants (no longer joining),” Shaffer said. 

Cost for joining the PUA varies depending on population and for Weatherford, it would be $50,000 annually, which would give the city a rounded voting share of 25 percent.

Benefits of the PUA are that it would help face the challenges of water supply, cost and funding, economic development impacts and establish a collaborative structure.

Mayor Pro-Tem Zack Smith questioned why Weatherford would need to join since it’s “in great shape and there is no issue with longevity of water.” He also noted he feels like Weatherford is “so far ahead” and in the best shape of any of the other entities and was uncertain the money being spent to join couldn’t be better used elsewhere.  

“When I am looking at this, it’s not looking at what are we doing today, what are we doing in the next 20 years, I am looking at what Weatherford is going to do in the next 40, 50 years to meet the needs of our customers,” Shaffer said.

Ultimately, council approved adoption of the resolution and authorized City Manager James Hotopp to execute the agreement. 

Also at the meeting, Jaycob Kirkpatrick, director of Parks, Recreation and Special Events, presented final design for the Holland Lake Park playground.

The playground includes a 27-foot tower with multiple ways to get to the top, including a cable-netting system, and can accommodate many children. It also connects to another play piece. 

“Fun fact is that we are only the third city to have this tower, but we are the first city to actually connect this tower to another piece of equipment,” Kirkpatrick said. 

Mayor Paul Paschall asked if lighting and video surveillance was going to be included for the area. Kirkpatrick said lighting was provided around the trail, but none was planned at the park specifically and that, yes, there was going to be video. 

Council unanimously voted to approve Whirlix Design Inc, for construction at a total cost of $2.457 million. The project should be completed in June 2027.