Harris County Municipal Utility District (MUD) 368 --
originally known as Three Lakes MUD No. 1 -- was created by
order of the Texas Water Rights Commission (currently the
Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality - TCEQ) on December 13, 1973, to
provide water and wastewater services to residents. Since that
time, the District has added garbage collection, recycling and
Harris County Precinct 4
Constable security services.
In September of 1990, Well No. 1, which reached into the
Evangeline Aquifer, was plugged and discontinued after Benzene
was discovered during state mandated testing. Dedicated to
supplying those we served with the safest services possible,
water was purchased from Northwest Harris County MUD No. 15 for
the next 2-1/2 years. During that time, the Board worked to
secure financing and begin construction on a new water well
(Well No. 2), located in Pinecrest Forest Subdivision (at Water
Plant No. 1), that goes into the Chicot Aquifer, which is
separated from the contamination in the Evangeline aquifer.
With concerns over a District tax rate that had peaked to its
highest level in 1995 because the benzene issue and a downturn
in the local economy, the Board worked to refinance some
existing high interest bonds that were sold in the 1980's. This
resulted in an extremely successful lowering of the rate from
$2.90 per $100 property valuation to an impressive $1.50 per
$100!
Two years later, due to renewed growth coupled with an
increasing demand for water in the area, the District drilled a
third water well in Three Lakes East Subdivision (Well No. 3),
also within the Chicot Aquifer. And in 2002, in an effort to
sustain safe drinking water and wastewater treatment services in
the event of long-term weather-related outages, two automatic
standby generators were installed at Water Plant No. 1 and the
Wastewater Treatment Plant. This is another example of our
continued commitment to safety and our proactive approach to the
services we provide.
In 2004, an additional water well (Well No. 4), was drilled
into the Jasper Aquifer and we expanded the Wastewater Treatment
Plant capacity. In 2006, another water well (Well No. 5), was
drilled into the Chicot Aquifer and we expanded Remote Water
Well No. 4 to become Water Plant No. 2-- a plant that also
includes automatic standby generator power and an increase in
our water storage capacity by 200% -- providing improved water
pressure regulation and fire-fighting capabilities throughout
the District. We have also added additional pressure pumps at
Water Plant No. 1 and the District now qualifies for the Texas
Superior Water Rating awarded by the TCEQ for superior water
quality and service. The District received this recognition on
July 11, 2005.
Planned projects for 2007 included an expansion of the
Wastewater Treatment Plant from 0.9 MGD (million gallons per
day) to 1.275 MGD. Construction was totally contained within the
present fenced area. Completion of this Wastewater Treatment
Plant expansion occured in late summer of 2010. A District
storage building is completed at the Water Plant No. 1. This
building house repair parts/equipment and protects a trailer
mounted portable generator for operating Remote Lift Station
Pumps during power outages. The trailer mounted generator
purchased in 2008 ensures the ability to provide
wastewater treatment for our residents in the event of a major
storm.
The Board continues to analyze the water needs of all of its
customers and through its advanced planning, helps to meet those
needs. The Board began planning for a new water well (No. 6) in
the spring of 2007. Completion of this well and distribution
line occured in the fall of 2010. The efforts helped ensure its customers uninterrupted water service into
the future. The board also secured additional surface water supply from
NHCRWA.
The Board has expanded its Contract Deputy Constable Program
to 100% coverage for six (6) officers. This has permitted better
coverage and faster response times as the District continues to
grow in size.
With the District now comprised of over 1050 acres of land and
an estimated additional 85 acres soon to be annexed, the Board
has worked tirelessly to keep pace with this growth in our
community, and to expand in size and continually upgrade
existing plants and equipment all the while continuing to lower
the tax rate to what it is today, $0.945 per $100 property
valuation.
The District is currently in sound financial condition with
modern, well maintained facilities. The Board continues to work
to lower operational costs by improving efficiencies. These
efforts will help to offset rising costs of electricity,
chemicals and state mandated testing.
Harris County MUD #368 is managed by five elected Directors
and is presently composed of nine subdivisions in various states
of development: Three Lakes, Three Lakes East, Pinecrest Forest,
Northpointe East, Willow Falls, StonePine, Northern Point,
Ashford Place, and Ashford Grove. The total number of
connections served are over 3,400.
