I am presently a homeowner at Tapatio Springs. For the past 20 years, my husband and I have lived in the Bulverde/Boerne area, the past eight years at Tapatio.

For a couple of years now, our neighborhood has been subjected to constant untruths regarding the water situation in our community. This misinformation and allegations have caused a great harm to the residents here. Many, including myself and my husband, have been unable to sell their homes or other properties. Prospective buyers are hesitant to buy here, as they have read or heard that Tapatio Springs has water problems.

All the years we have lived here, I can honestly say that we have never been without water. We do honor the drought-dictated restrictions the same as surrounding communities. Our yards and the golf course show it.

Golf course watering has been severely curtailed because of apparent misinformation fed to the Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District. It appears that the district has been operating with some outdated information as to the water supply in Kendall County and some misguided input from persons not as informed as they claim.

The reported customers’ water rate issue with Kendall County Utilities, which serves Tapatio Springs, is in the process of being resolved. Water delivery has not been affected.

Peoples’ good names, property values and livelihoods are at stake. Efforts should be made to report drought conditions in an honest and fair manner after getting the facts straight.

Pat Cannon

Tapatio Springs

Editor:

I would like to publicly compliment Wet Rock Groundwater Services for the excellent report that was given at the Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District (CCGCD) meeting on July 14.

The speaker gave us great news; there is an incredible amount of data compiled going back to 1940 and the aquifer beneath us has a substantial amount of water flowing through it. He stated that the Texas Water Development Board estimates of water availability in the county underestimates the amount of water that is actually available and the drops in water levels are due to the drought we are currently in.

The average home on one acre pumps approximately 1 acre-foot of water per year. The average recharge to the aquifer is 132,000 acre-feet per year, of which CCGCD permits less than 5,000 acre-feet.

Throughout our history of dry spells, having a good, reliable water source has always been a concern. Many fail to realize that in the past we did not have the technology in effect for the average property owner in the county to have a well over 500 feet deep.

It is unfortunate if you have a shallow well because in a drought it can easily go dry, as many of us have experienced.

It’s not much different than trying to drink a milkshake with a 2-inch-long straw. To fix the problem, you may call a local well company to have your pump lowered, have a new well put in, or add a rainwater harvesting system. Any one of these should give you added security about having water when you need it.

In response to several articles, letters, and comments about controlling growth; let’s not do it with false threats that we’re running out of water or stomping on someone’s personal property rights.

I am not speaking of the property deed with your name on it; I’m speaking for the property owner who has a deed with his name on it and no one else’s. If you want to stop your neighbor from developing his property there is a legal way to do it; get out your checkbook and make him an offer he can’t refuse.

Mike Luckey

Boerne