│ UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

│ Economic Development Administration

│ 903 San Jacinto Blvd., Ste. 206
│ Austin, TX 78701-2450

August 17, 2018

Via Email: Mayor Susan Jaggers, City of Wimberley

susan@stevenjaggers.com
Cc: Gary Barchfeld, Wimberley City Council
gbarch@austin.rr.com
Craig Fiore, Wimberley City Council
cfore1@austin.rr.com
Charles Zech, DNRBZ
charles.zech@rampage-sa.com
Cameron Cox, DNRBZ
cameron.cox@rampage-aus.com
Sarah Griffin, DNRBZ
Sarah.Griffin@rampage-aus.com

Re: Wimberley EDA Grant Project # 08-01-05136, Amendment Request

Dear Mayor Jaggers:

The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has completed its review of your most
recent Aqua Texas plan grant amendment request to remove EDA grant funding from the City-
owned wastewater plant already under construction and to instead fund construction of a revised
version of the wastewater collection system to serve a privately-owned wastewater plant across
Cypress Creek.
The EDA Austin Regional Office in consultation with the EDA Office of Chief Counsel has
determined consistent with EDA’s and government-wide regulations (13 C.F.R. Chapter III and
2 C.F.R. Part 200) that the proposed amendment changes the scope of the award so significantly
as to make this proposal a different EDA grant request all together. Thus, EDA is unable to
approve the grant amendment request.
The original EDA grant and first amendment to downscope due to a significant overrun were
based on EDA’s programmatic, legal, engineering, and environmental analyses of the project as
presented in the original Application. The property section of the EDA Application stated “The
City of Wimberley will own the project and be responsible for operation, maintenance and
management of the project.” In the Application the City proposed to contract out plant
1
operations and maintenance, but it was represented to EDA that the City would still be primarily
responsible. This was a major competitive factor that EDA considered when deciding to make
the grant award and subsequent grant amendment.
The new grant amendment request would require a change in ownership structure of the overall
project and a significant change to the footprint of the collection system, including crossing
Cypress Creek. These changes would require new EDA legal, environmental, and engineering
analyses beyond that of a simple grant amendment. Also, as EDA and the City have previously
discussed, the collection system construction contract already entered into was not procured
according to EDA requirements and cannot be retroactively approved by EDA. Taken together,
these significant changes to the approved EDA project are so substantial from EDA’s legal
perspective that it is an entirely new project that cannot be approved as a grant amendment.
Note that while EDA is unable to approve the grant amendment request, the first amendment to
the original grant continues to be a viable option that would not require re-submission and re-
competing of a new Application.
We understand the importance of the overall project for the City and appreciate your efforts to
try to accomplish the City’s objectives within the bounds of the EDA grant. However, while the
Aqua Texas plan proposed by the City may have many potential benefits at the local level, it is
not compatible with the current EDA grant.
In summary, going forward there are two viable options for the EDA grant. The first option is
that the City continue with the currently approved EDA grant scope of completing construction
of the City-owned treatment plant in the approved location. The second option is that if the City
wishes to pursue the Aqua Texas plan instead, then the City and EDA can mutually agree to
terminate the EDA grant for convenience. Simply put, this type of EDA grant termination means
that the grantee did their best to carry out the approved grant project, but that unforeseen
circumstances made it impossible for the grantee to do so, and EDA was not able to
accommodate the grantee’s requested grant changes under the changed circumstances. Under
the second option, EDA would terminate its grant funding, but the City would then be free from
the current EDA grant requirements. After the termination, the City could subsequently submit a
new Application for EDA funding, subject to EDA’s competitive review process.
EDA will await notice from Wimberley as to which option you would like to pursue.

Sincerely,

Jorge Ayala
Regional Director
U.S. Department of Commerce
Economic Development Administration
Austin Regional Office