Hewitt Engineering Inc. of Kerrville was hired for a contract not to exceed $50,000 by Kerr County commissioners Wednesday to conduct an engineering study for a proposed high water detection system.
Commissioner Tom Moser said Hewitt Engineering was the only one to submit a request for qualifications on the project, but the steering committee — consisting of Moser, Kerrville Mayor Bonnie White, Upper Guadalupe River Authority General Manager Ray Buck, Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator Dub Thomas and Kerrville Emergency Management Coordinator Roger Lampman — said Hewitt was qualified for the project.
The funding for the study will come from the road and bridge department’s special projects fund.
John Hewitt, owner and founder of Hewitt engineering, said the next step for him is to interview the parties included in the committee as well as representatives from the Texas Department of Transportation.
“I’m going to find out what they have already for monitoring and if there’s certain crossings they would like to see be monitored,” Hewitt said. “The goal is to see really where do we want to put high water detection systems and how to tell the public.”
The study does not guarantee that the parties will move forward with any project. The funding for the study is split, with Kerr County and UGRA spending 40 percent each and Kerrville paying for the remaining 20 percent.
A preliminary report is due by the end of September, and Hewitt said a final report is expected at the end of December.
The commissioners voted 2-1 to approve the engineering study contract. Commission Bob Reeves was absent for a personal matter and Commissioner H.A. “Buster” Baldwin voted against.
Baldwin voted against the project at a previous meeting, saying he was concerned about the amount of spending to update the system and whether the upgrades were necessary.
“I think this whole thing is a little extravagant for Kerr County, with sirens and such,” Baldwin said. “Taking these funds out of special projects from the road and bridge department ticks me off a little bit.”
Hewitt said he is glad the various entities want to work together to assess the flood warning system.
“They’re interested in a community-wide system that everyone can use,” Hewitt said. “That’s great that they want to work together.”
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