SAN ANGELO, Texas —
Many throughout San Angelo look at Lake Nasworthy and tend to see a drying lake. Lower levels. Boats suspended above the water because it is too shallow for release. Watermarks on docks.
Councilman Paul Alexander looks at the lake and sees opportunity. He sees a chance for development.
“This is the time to think, ‘Where should the money be spent? What projects do we want to see?’ ” Alexander told me. “Then we begin.”
Other residents have a similar idea. At forums about the lake and other times in remarks to council members, lake dwellers have wanted to use the low levels to remove exposed tree branches, dredge the lake or add ramp improvements.
Alexander said he wants a bigger picture first. Specifically, he wants the picture that Gateway Planning Group will be paid to develop.
The City Council last month approved about $335,000 for a plan to develop Lake Nasworthy.
The group had come to the council during a meeting in May with a presentation on how it had successfully developed the city of Roanoke, using Babe’s Chicken Dinner House there as a centerpiece to start a revitalization plan. (Bias disclaimer: I’ve eaten at Babe’s. It’s delicious.)
I spoke with Jimmy Stathatos, city manager of Roanoke, a town of about 8,000 north of Fort Worth.
“They did an incredible job,” he said of Gateway Planning Group. “Their planning and consulting will leave a lasting impact.”
He said that there wasn’t anything he would’ve done differently and that the project helped win the city state and regional awards for redevelopment.
The city now brands itself as “The Unique Dining Capital of Texas.”
That project consisted mostly of a new zoning plan and new landscaping and streetscaping that ended up costing about $10 million.
For a project in San Angelo, the capital costs could be much higher. Alexander’s failed attempt at improving the running trail around the KOA near the lake was set to cost about $234,000.
Integrating roads and trails around the lake area could cost millions.
So Alexander has proposed the idea of freeing up the $11.33 million in the Lake Nasworthy Trust Fund by taking it to San Angelo residents in a referendum.
The fund could receive more than $13 million additionally from city-owned property that the city has been selling to people living on and leasing property there. And, of course, that money could be leveraged to get state and federal grants.
However, that kind of redevelopment is never really over, and there would be additional costs down the road.
“We’re not done” with development, Stathatos said of Roanoke.
Alexander has said multiple people have come to him prepared to invest more than $1 million in the lake area. Those investments could benefit the city through new taxes and a revived tourist draw to the lake. Of course, all that depends on whether they will come if you build it. It’s always a risk.
Now is the time to dream big, Alexander said, to ask people what kind of things they want to see at the lake. He is, however, asking for them to wait for the big picture, instead of doing it piecemeal, although he does think there might be an opportunity to do some maintenance and projects before rain fills the lake.
Alexander’s attitude and that of other city officials is one of confident optimism in the face of the city’s most stringent drought level. Everyone is saying it will rain. In fairness, this weekend it did rain.
The state of water in West Texas is still dire, however. Almost all of Tom Green County is in “severe drought” according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, as released in its Texas map Thursday.
The rains may very well take San Angelo out of drought level 3. In the long run, however, the drought may not be over.
Matthew Waller covers state and local government for the Standard-Times. Contact him at mwaller@gosanangelo.com or 325-659-8263 or follow him on Twitter @waller_matthew.
Speak Your Mind