MUD 18 Newsletter
Spring 2021

Board of Directors: The MUD 18 Board of Directors consists of 5 members elected by registered voters in the District. No existing board terms are expiring in 2021 so no election will be held this year.

In December 2020, Rex Cambern stepped down as Board President and Susan McFarland was approved by the board as President. Mr. Cambern changed to Secretary and Gary Montgomery assumed the Treasurer position. Lou Tichacek remains Vice President and Nancy Busen as Assistant Secretary.

Annual Audit Report: Mark Eyring, CPC, PLLC, presented the annual audit to the board for the fiscal year ending on September 30, 2020. The audit was unanimously approved by the board at the January meeting. The audit is required by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The board instituted a plan to deal with expensive maintenance requirements with recourse to bond issuance. The result has been the 5-year plan with a proactive approach to finances. Financial resources are principally derived from taxes. Property taxes in the district have remained stable over the past several years. The 2020 audit confirms that the MUD 18 budget and activities are consistent with the District’s 5-Year Plan.

Sewer, Trash & Recycling: As we move into spring, please bag leaves and/or yard clean-up and tie up trimmed tree branches for garbage pick-up. When left in the street, yard debris can block sewer drains. Waste Management picks up on all holidays but Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year. If trash pick-up falls on Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year on a regularly scheduled trash/recycle day, pick-up will occur on the next regularly scheduled day. Recycle pick-up only occurs on Thursdays. If a holiday occurs on a Thursday, trash will be picked up on Monday but recycle will not be picked up until the following Thursday.

Watch the Weather and Water Smarter! Texas springs vary in weather with average temperature highs from 70 to 83 degrees and lows from 55 to 61 degrees with intermittent rain. Some springs are hot and dry while others are cool and wet. Most homeowners in the District have automatic water irrigation systems. Set automatic sprinklers to coincide with the amount of rain. Residents are encouraged to have someone monitor their watering system while they are away. For more details, check Texas A & M website at http://aggieturf.tamu.edu.

Need to Report a Problem? Do not assume the problem has already been identified or reported. If you observe a water leak, sewer odor, discolored water, open manholes, alarms are sounding, or other problems, please help us by calling: Hays Utility Service @ 936-588-1166.
Hays has someone in Bentwater every day, seven days a week. They can and will respond 24 hours a day. Their general office hours are from 8:00AM to 4:30PM Monday through Friday.

Sign-up for E-Blasts: If you are not receiving our E-Blasts, you are missing out on timely information. Go to our website at www.mcmud18.com and give us your email address. Your address will not be shared with anyone. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Meetings Open to the Public:
Our regularly scheduled monthly meetings are the 3rd Tuesdays at 9:30AM in the Country Club Cypress Room. Meetings are open to the public. The agenda is posted on our web site and the message board in the breezeway entrance to the Country Club Grill near the Golf Pro-shop. During the COVID19 restrictions, meetings of MUD18 have been conducted by Zoom. If you wish to attend a meeting, please contact Susan McFarland for the meeting ID code. Minutes from meetings are published on the MUD 18 web site.

Your MUD Board:

Susan McFarland – President
Lou Tichacek – Vice President
Rex Cambern – Treasurer
Gary Montgomery – Secretary
Nancy Busen – Assistant Secretary

Please be advised that collection service has been delayed Monday within Montgomery County MUD 18. We will be returning to community tomorrow, Tuesday, December 1, 2020 to complete service.

The following streets will be recovered: Wedgewood Dr. & Grey Moss Ln.

We apologize for any inconvenience the delay in service may cause. Thank you for your patience and flexibility while we work to complete service.

MUD 18 Newsletter
Fall/Winter 2020-21

Hurricane Preparedness: We are currently in the hurricane season that runs from June 1 to November 30. Considerable damage has been sustained by our neighbors in Louisiana. Bentwater residents should be prepared for the effects of major storms. Educational information prepared by NOAA includes the following:

• Determine your risk
• Develop an evacuation plan
• Assemble disaster supplies
• Check insurance coverage
• Strengthen your home
• Help your neighbors

More specific guidelines from NOAA regarding hurricane preparedness can be found on the MUD 18 website at www.mcmud.com.

Financial: As of September 2020, 99.1% of taxes have been collected for the District for 2019. The District approved the 2020 tax rate at $0.16 for debt service and $0.16 for maintenance and operations for a total tax rate at $0.32 per $100 taxable value. The tax rate for 2020 is down $0.01 from the previous year.

1. Debt Service of $0.16 is down $0.01 from the previous year. The District has not needed to sell any new bonds since 2011 and such pay downs and pay offs of earlier bonds have reduced the amount required to meet Debt Service obligations.
2. Maintenance and Operations (M&O) of $0.16 covers maintenance of all our facilities including water plants, waste treatment plants, lift stations, storm drainage infrastructure and distribution lines. Costs of M&O have been stable the past year.

You should receive your tax bill in October and payment is due by January 31, 2021.

Sewer, Trash & Recycling: As we move into fall, please bag leaves and/or shrub trimmings and tie up trimmed tree branches for garbage pick-up. When left in the street, yard debris can block sewer drains. Waste Management picks up on all holidays but Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year. If trash pick-up falls on Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year on a regularly scheduled trash/recycle day, pick-up will occur on the next regularly scheduled day. Recycle pick-up only occurs on Thursdays. If a holiday occurs on a Thursday, trash will be picked up on Monday but recycle will not be picked up until the following Thursday.

Winter Watering Tips: 1. Winter tips for watering: In the event of a freeze advisory, please be certain to run your irrigation to fortify your plants and flowers. It takes longer for well-watered plants to freeze. After watering, then cover all the plants and flowers that are susceptible to freeze damage. If some plants do get freeze damage, do not trim off the dead parts until late January, when most of the severe weather has passed. The dead parts will help protect the plants and flowers from another freeze. 2. The irrigation schedule can be set to once a week or less until February if the rainfall has been moderate. Contrary to popular belief, the winter is a very dry climate. The fact is that the cooling weather withdraws moisture from the plants, moisture which must be replaced to maintain your lawn and landscape in optimal condition.

In July 2020, the District approved an extension of a 12-inch waterline to be placed along FM1097 that crosses at the east end of the proposed new fire station. The new fire station will be located across from the Bentwater West Gate. The construction of the new waterline has been completed. Costs of the waterline were covered by the fire station.
Fencing additional property around Water Plant No. 1 was also completed in September.

Need to Report a Problem? Do not assume the problem has already been identified or reported. If you observe a water leak, sewer odor, discolored water, open manholes, alarms are sounding, or other problems, please help us by calling: Hays Utility Service @ 936-588-1166.

Hays has someone in Bentwater every day, seven days a week. They can and will respond 24 hours a day. Their general office hours are from 8:00AM to 4:30PM Monday through Friday.
Sign-up for E-Blasts: If you are not receiving our E-Blasts, you are missing out on timely information. Go to our website at www.mcmud18.com and give us your email address. Your address will not be shared with anyone. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Meetings Open to the Public:
Our regularly scheduled monthly meetings are the 3rd Tuesdays at 9:30AM in the Country Club Cypress Room. Meetings are open to the public. The agenda is posted on our web site and the message board in the breezeway entrance to the Country Club Grill near the Golf Pro-shop. During the COVID19 restrictions, meetings of MUD18 have been conducted by Zoom. If you wish to attend a meeting, please contact Susan McFarland for the meeting ID code. Minutes from meetings are published on the MUD 18 web site.

Your MUD Board:

Rex Cambern President
Lou Tichacek Vice President
Susan McFarland Treasurer
Gary Montgomery Secretary
Nancy Busen Assistant Secretary

Please recycle this newsletter.