The Goodman Point Water District has paid off its $700,000 loan five years early and signed the paperwork to dissolve as a special tax district.
The project funded water infrastructure for 35 residents who had been hauling water for decades, said JR Berry, who started the project in 2002.
“It’s wonderful to see it come to fruition,” he said.
The $1 million project, including 11 miles of water lines and 54,000 gallon tank, was made possible by Kinder Morgan. The company agreed to opt into the special tax district created to fund the project and contributed about $580,000 to the district, even though the companies facilities within the tax district not connected to the new lines, said company representative Sara Loeffelholz.
“Kinder Morgan is committed to being a good neighbor,” she said.
Every year, the district was surprised by increasing tax revenue from Kinder Morgan.
An initial grant for about $270,000 from the Southwest Colorado Basin Roundtable also contributed to the cost. The district also slightly over budgeted the cost and they were able to pay off a lump sum immediately after construction was finished.
Since the project was finished, the district members have been Montezuma Water Co. customers, and the company will continue to maintain the lines.
The dissolution of the special tax district marks the end of what seemed like an impossible project.
“They had been trying to get water for almost 40 years and just never could seem to make it work,” Berry said.