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Cape’s Dam has been in limbo since the San Marcos City Council voted to have it removed in 2016 but then opted to suspend the permitting process necessary for its removal. Now, Hays County is offering to take over maintenance and operations of the dam, the mill race and the parkland adjacent to it, though the city of San Marcos would maintain ownership.
The San Marcos City Council held a discussion about the county’s offer during its workshop meeting on Tuesday. Community Services head Drew Wells gave the presentation on the county’s proposal.
Wells said that along with offering to help restore the dam and manage the area around it, Hays County is considering giving the City of San Marcos the Five Mile Dam Soccer Complex and the adjacent parks. The city already maintains the soccer facility, though it is county property.
“It doesn’t necessarily need to be tied to the Cape’s Dam project,” Wells said. “It’s just something I think you need to be aware of as a council, and if we want to pursue any opportunity there those could be discussed as a separate matter.”
Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Prewitt clarified that although the council voted to remove Cape’s Dam, it made no decisions on the mill race because council members wanted to look at options for the channel. The city requested a report on what could be done with the mill race but council never received the report.
“We’re not getting all the information that we asked for two years ago,” she said.
Prewitt mentioned her concerns about safety and the environmental effects of the dam.
“There’s been over 1,200 dams removed in the last 30 years across the nation … trying to restore and repair our rivers and streams," Prewitt said. "I want to understand why the people who are advocating to rebuild this dam, what’s in it for the river? Why is this healthier for the river?”
Moreover, she said, “I remember when the city took over that property and our staff came up and said, ‘This is going to be incredibly difficult if not impossible to respond to people drowning.’”
Prewitt also noted that the council voted to remove the dam, and although efforts have been halted, the issue has not come back to council.
Council member Ed Mihalkanin noted that people can drown anywhere that has more than 6 inches of water, and that includes other parks in San Marcos; the danger is not limited to the area around Cape’s Dam. He also said that returning the river to its natural state would go against the measures the city has taken to prevent bank erosion by putting stones and other materials in place.
“Last time I checked, concrete isn’t natural,” he said. “... We can’t say we want it natural but we don’t.”
Kate Johnson, head of the Hays County Historical Commission, said that the county is working on answering all the questions city council had brought up.
“We are looking into a committee to cover everything that you have mentioned,” she said, noting that the county’s next step is coming up with a conceptual plan.
Mayor Jane Hughson noted that when the city voted to remove the dam, council did not have all the information and never decided what to do with the mill race, whether a park would be put in and if so if it would be a full park, and other matters.
“And I think that there are even some bigger issues,” she said. “... I think this is a really, really monumental decision. There are some beautiful opportunities here, but I need some of these questions answered myself.”
Council members agreed that they would be interested in looking at a conceptual plan drawn up by the county. They also agreed to consider the Five Mile Dam issue as a matter separate from Cape’s Dam.
