SAN ANGELO, Texas —
The City of San Angelo has sold a third parcel of Ford Ranch to neighboring property owners. Ford Ranch totaled 32,841 acres when the City first bought it in 2016 for approximately $44 million or $1,350 an acre.
Ford Ranch is home to the Hickory Aquifer, which is San Angelo's only non-surface water source.
"The Hickory groundwater supply is very important to the City of San Angelo. It is our only non-surface water source. As drought plagues west Texas, we can be more reliant on groundwater. This aquifer provides that drought resiliency that the City of San Angelo needs," said Allison Strube, the director of water utilities for the City of San Angelo.
The sale made on Tuesday, July 21, was for 575 acres for a price no less than $1,950 per acre. Strube said it was always the City's intention to sell parts of the land.
“The Ford Ranch was up for sale by the previous owner, and because the water rights were acquired back in the '70s, there was some language that wasn’t interpreted the same. So, that’s why the city decided to purchase the property: to clean up that language, to protect the water rights, and then to resell the property. We wanted to protect the assets of the Hickory Aquifer, so that’s why the purchase was made, always with the intent to sell the property moving forward," she said.
The portion sold on July 21 does not have the hickory underground water system or city well on that property, according to Strube. Strube also said the money from the sale will be used to repay the debt issued to buy the ranch back in 2016. There will be no changes to the City's water supply or prices.