The Kyle City Council approved a contract with the Crystal Clear Special Utility District, or SUD, to purchase over $250,000 of water over the next year to meet projected demand.
Due to delays in the development of a city of Kyle water supply expansion project with the Alliance Regional Water Authority, or ARWA, projected demands would not be met by the city, according to agenda documents.
The Kyle City Council approved an ARWA water-sharing agreement with the Crystal Clear SUD to ensure the city’s water demand and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality-mandated alternative capacity requirements would be met while the expansion project is developed.
What happened
The agreement with ARWA and the Crystal Clear SUD allows Kyle to receive up to 223,185 gallons of water per day, directly from ARWA, for an initial term of one year.
The water will come from the SUD’s authorized water supply. The city will pay the SUD a maximum of $62,495.56 in fiscal year 2025-26 and $188,317.60 in FY 2026-27, for a total contract of $250,813.16.
“We're able to purchase this water that they don't need,” said Director of Water Utilities Mike Murphy. “They're sitting on this water, so this is a benefit to them also. We'll be paying them for the water that they really aren't using.”
The background
In April 2025, the City Council adopted the city’s Water Master Plan, detailing strategies to ensure water demand for current and future residents is met.
The ARWA Phase 1C/1D expansion project, the construction of new regional pipelines to supply additional water to the city, was outlined in the plan, according to agenda documents.
The expansion project was initially projected to come online in May 2027. Due to multiple delays, the project is now expected to come online at the end of 2028 or the first quarter of 2029, Murphy said.
The Crystal Clear SUD determined it will receive more water from ARWA than it needs to meet its demands, Murphy said.
The SUD has the capacity to temporarily provide the city of Kyle with water while satisfying its own regulatory requirements and customer obligations, according to agenda documents.
