AIRW 2017-7, L.P.; 600 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; 800 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; And Jonah Water Special Utility District v. City of Georgetown, Texas

Court of Appeals of Texas

AIRW 2017-7, L.P.; 600 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; 800 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; And Jonah Water Special Utility District v. City of Georgetown, Texas

DecidedJanuary 15, 2025

Docket15-24-00132-CV

StatusPublished

This text of AIRW 2017-7, L.P.; 600 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; 800 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; And Jonah Water Special Utility District v. City of Georgetown, Texas (AIRW 2017-7, L.P.; 600 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; 800 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; And Jonah Water Special Utility District v. City of Georgetown, Texas) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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AIRW 2017-7, L.P.; 600 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; 800 Westinghouse Investments, LLC; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; And Jonah Water Special Utility District v. City of Georgetown, Texas, (Tex. Ct. App. 2025).

Pincite

Opinion

D-1-GN-23-001004 TRIAL COURT CASE NO. _________________

§ IN THE DISTRICT COURT FILED IN § 15th COURT OF APPEALS § TRAVIS COUNTY, ________ AUSTIN, TEXAS TEXAS § 1/15/2025 4:48:07 PM § JUDICIAL DISTRICT CHRISTOPHER A. PRINE Clerk DISTRICT CLERK’S INFORMATION SHEET THE FOLLOWING INFROMATION HAS BEEN COMPILED BY THE DISTRICT CLERKS OFFICE:

Date of order appealed: 12/2/2024 Type of Order (Interlocutory or Final) FINAL Date Motion for New Trial Filed: NA Request for Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law filed: NA Date Notice of Appeal Filed: 1/14/2025 Name of judge who entered judgment: LAURIE EISERLOH Name of court reporter: NOTES INDICATE NO RECORD TAKEN Address of court reporter: 1700 GUADALUPE ST AUSTIN, TX 78701 Name of attorney on appeal: Erin R. Selvera SB#: 24043385 Attorney Address: 4301 Westbank Drive, Suite B-130 Austin, Texas 78746 erin@carltonlawaustin.com Attorney E-Mail Address: __________________________________________________ Attorney on appeal (check applicable box): appointed ✔ retained Pro Se WILLIAM FAULK/ SARA JO FERRIS 24075674/50511915 Name of Appellee’s Attorney:___________________________________SB#________________ 816 CONGRESS AVE #1200 AUSTIN, TX 78701 /PO BOX 12548 MC 066 AUSTIN, TX 78711-2548 Attorney Address:_________________________________________________________ cfaulk@spencerfane.com / SARA.FERRIS@OAG.TEXAS.GOV Attorney E-Mail Address:___________________________________________________

Send Information Sheet, Notice of Appeal and Motion for New Trial (if filed) to: Third Court of Appeals (E-Mail Copy in PDF format to: 3rdClerksAndReporters@txcourts.gov) Court Reporter: ______E-Mail _______Hand Delivery _______Mail

On By: (clerk’s initials) 1/14/2025 2:49 PM Velva L. Price District Clerk Travis County Cause No. D-1-GN-23-001004 D-1-GN-23-001004 Susan Poodiack

CITY OF GEORGETOWN, TEXAS, § IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF Plaintiff, § § vs. § § TEXAS COMMISSION ON § ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY, § Defendant, § § and § TRAVIS COUNTY, TEXAS § AIRW 2017-7, L.P., 600 § WESTINGHOUSE INVESTMENTS, § LLC, and 800 WESTINGHOUSE § INVESTMENTS, LLC, and § JONAH WATER SPECIAL UTILITY § DISTRICT, § Intervenor-Defendant § 261ST JUDICIAL DISTRICT.

JONAH WATER SPECIAL UTILITY DISTRICT’S NOTICE OF APPEAL

NOW COMES, Jonah Water Special Utility District, Intervenor-Defendant in the above-

referenced proceeding, and states its intent to appeal the Final Judgement entered in the above-

referenced proceeding (Cause No. D-1-GN-23-001004 in the 261st Judicial District Court, Travis

County, Texas), signed on December 2, 2024.

Pursuant to Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 25 and Texas Government Code

§ 22.220(d), Jonah Water Special Utility District appeals to the Court of Appeals for the Fifteenth

District of Texas and provides a true and correct copy of the Final Judgement as Exhibit A attached

hereto.

Erin R. Selvera John J. Carlton State Bar No. 03817600 Kelli A. N. Carlton State Bar No. 15091175

JONAH WATER SPECIAL UTILITY DISTRICT’S NOTICE OF APPEAL Page 1 of 3 Erin R. Selvera State Bar No. 24043385 THE CARLTON LAW FIRM, P.L.L.C. 4301 Westbank Drive, Suite B-130 Austin, Texas 78746 john@carltonlawaustin.com kelli@carltonlawaustin.com erin@carltonlawaustin.com Telephone: (512) 614-0901 Facsimile: (512) 900-2855 ATTORNEYS FOR JONAH WATER SPECIAL UTILITY DISTRICT

JONAH WATER SPECIAL UTILITY DISTRICT’S NOTICE OF APPEAL Page 2 of 3 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that I have served or will serve a true and correct copy of the foregoing document on all parties of record on this 14th day of January 2025, as follows:

FOR PLAINTIFF, CITY OF Helen S. Gilbert GEORGETOWN: Yahaira De Lara William A. Faulk, III Barton Benson Jones, PLLC Carlota Hopinks-Baul 7000 North MoPac Expressway Maris M. Chambers Suite 200 Spencer Fane, LLP Austin, Texas 78731 816 Congress Avenue, Suite 1200 hgilbert@bartonbensonjones.com Austin, Texas 78701 ydelara@bartonbensonjones.com cfaulk@spencerfane.com Edmond McCarthy chbaul@spencerfane.com McCarthy & McCarthy, LLP mchambers@spencerfane.com 1122 Colorado St. Suite 2399 Patricia Erlinger Carls Austin, TX 78701 Law Offices of Patricia Erlinger Carls ed@ermlawfirm.com 3100 Glenview Ave. Austin, Texas 78703-1443 tcarls@tcarlslaw.com

FOR DEFENDANT TCEQ: Sara J. Ferris Office of the Attorney General Environmental Protection Division P.O. Box 12548, MC-066 Austin, Texas 78711-2548 sara.ferris@oag.texas.gov

FOR INTERVENORS AIRW 2017-7, L.P., 600 WESTINGHOUSE INVESTMENTS, LLC AND 800 WESTINGHOUSE INVESTMENTS, LLC Andrew B. Davis William T. Thompson Todd Disher Lehotsky Keller Cohn, LLP 408 W. 11th Street, 5th Floor Austin, Texas 78701 andrew@lkcfirm.com will@lkcfrim.com todd@lkcfirm.com

Erin R. Selvera

JONAH WATER SPECIAL UTILITY DISTRICT’S NOTICE OF APPEAL Page 3 of 3 12/02/2024 11:50:08 AM Velva L. Price EXHIBIT A District Clerk Travis County D-1-GN-23-001004

CAUSE NO. D-1-GN-23-001004

CITY OF GEORGETOWN, TEXAS § IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF § Plaintiff, § § vs. § § TRAVIS COUNTY, TEXAS TEXAS COMMISSION ON § ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY, § § Defendant. § 261ST JUDICIAL DISTRICT

FINAL JUDGMENT REVERSING ORDER OF TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

This case is an appeal of a final agency order relating to the issuance by the Texas

Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”) to Intervenor AIRW 2017-7, L.P. (“AIRW”) of

a new Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit (the “Permit”) to discharge up to

200,000 gallons per day of treated domestic wastewater from a proposed wastewater treatment

facility within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the plaintiff, City of Georgetown (“City” or

“Plaintiff”). On October 31, 2024, this Court held a hearing on the merits of this cause. Having

considered the Texas Administrative Procedure Act, pleadings, administrative record, briefing,

and argument of counsel, the Court finds that the TCEQ’s order under review in this case should

be and is hereby REVERSED AND REMANDED to Defendant for further proceedings for the

following reasons:

1. Defendant erred by determining that the Permit complies with Texas’s regionalization policy.

2. Because Intervenor AIRW failed to seek a waiver from Plaintiff’s city council, there is no way to know whether the city council would be willing to waive the annexation requirement. It is unreasonable to assume that City staff—who are bound by the city council—speak for the city council, which is not bound and has both the power to waive requirements and the ability to act under political

Copy from re:SearchTX EXHIBIT A considerations. This means that Defendant should not have determined both that (1) Plaintiff denied Intervenor AIRW service; and (2) connection to Plaintiff’s system would cost Intervenor AIRW $20 million.

IT IS ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that TCEQ’s order is REVERSED

AND REMANDED TO THE TCEQ FOR FURTHER PROCEEDINGS CONSISTENT

WITH THIS ORDER.

This Judgment is final, disposes of all parties and claims, and is appealable.

SIGNED this __ of November, 2024.

December 2, 2024 Date:_____________________

__________________________________ JUDGE PRESIDING LAURIE EISERLOH 455th District Court

Copy from re:SearchTX EXHIBIT A

Copy from re:SearchTX Automated Certificate of eService This automated certificate of service was created by the efiling system. The filer served this document via email generated by the efiling system on the date and to the persons listed below. The rules governing certificates of service have not changed. Filers must still provide a certificate of service that complies with all applicable rules.

Katy Hennings on behalf of John Joseph Carlton Bar No.

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