Fort Worth’s Panther Island is running out of money. What’s next for the flood project?
The Trinity River Vision Authority, the partnership behind the $1.17 billion Panther Island project, will be out of cash by the end of the year.
Since the project’s inception in the early 2000s, the authority has run on a $200 million loan from the Tarrant Regional Water District, which covered the local costs for the project, like land acquisition, environmental cleanup and utility relocation. A $36.6 million budget for 2020 was passed earlier this year, but only $73,000 remains.
That money will fund basics — rent on the project’s downtown office (about $13,000 including parking) and contractors who schedule project work, said Sandy Newby, finance officer for the water district. That much is needed again Jan. 1 to keep the operation going.
The water district set aside about $5 million to begin paying off anticipated debt related to the project, Newby said. Some of that money could be diverted directly to the authority to sustain it for a few months. The authority has no employees. Those working on the project are employed by the Tarrant Regional Water District.
The depletion of the loan was expected. The Star-Telegram reported in September about $7 million was left.
But the city of Fort Worth and the water district, two key partners in the project that make up the Trinity River Vision Authority along with Tarrant County, have not been able to agree on how to spend local money going forward.
The plan had been to use a $250 million bond voters approved in 2018, but there has been a hiccup.
The bond would be financed through a special tax district that must be extended 10 years in order to recoup the money. The Fort Worth City Council and Mayor Betsy Price have been unwilling to extend the tax district until questions about future federal funding are resolved.
Congress in 2016 authorized up to $526 million for the project, but it has not been prioritized in the federal budget. The Army Corps of Engineers, in coordination with the water district, has asked for $30 million to $40 million each year but has received just $68 million since the mid-2000s.
“The city’s position has been: let’s see if we get that federal funding before we keep spending money,” City Manager David Cooke said. “Because if we don’t get federal money we need a Plan B.”
Cooke has said the city will not stand in the way of anything that would prevent the Corps from moving forward. He believes there is capacity within the current tax district that allows for spending for several years, he said.
The Army Corps of Engineers asked for about $38 million this fiscal year but it’s unclear how much will be received. The project was not prioritized in the 2020 White House budget.
Part of the local cost is relocating city utilities so the Corps can design a 1.5 mile bypass channel in the Trinity River meant to control flooding. Three bridges under construction that would span the channel are fully funded.
The expectation has been that the city will front the cost of utility work, about $13 million in 2020, and be paid back through the bond package.
But Jim Oliver, water district general manager, floated a bolder proposal Wednesday.
If the city agreed to do all the utility work, about $126 million, the water district could support the other half with out extending the tax district.
That presents a greater risk to the city because it is unclear when it would be paid back, but it allows the local effort to continue ahead of the Army Corps work.
Cooke, an authority board member, said he would present that idea to the City Council.
Carlos Flores, a city councilman and authority board member, wouldn’t say whether he thought his colleagues would support fronting the money.
“The short answer is, yes, there is a desire to see this project through, and have it be successful,” he said.
G.K. Maenius, Tarrant County Administrator and authority board president, said the expectation has always been that local partners would have the brunt of the cost before the Army Corps would begin work. However, he said the authority will not spend money that’s not available.
“We will not deficit spend,” he said.
This story was originally published December 4, 2019 at 6:20 PM.
