Your trusted source for community news
Editor's Note: This story has been corrected to reflect that City Councilmember Tina Bennett-Burton no longer lives on Farmers Branch Creek.
City Council unanimously approved a $1.8 million erosion control project for Reach 4 of Farmers Branch Creek on Tuesday, June 17, despite concerns from council members about whether the city is addressing projects in the proper priority order.
The council voted to authorize the city manager to execute a contract with Stoic Civil Construction Inc. for the erosion control work, which represents the lowest of five bids received for the project.
The approval came only after significant discussion about project prioritization, with Councilwoman Bennett-Burton raising questions about whether the city was following the engineering firm's recommended sequence for creek repairs.
"If we do not do this in the priority order that you gave us... are we going to have to go back and do say number 21 because we didn't fix everything above it," Bennett-Burton asked during the meeting.
Bennett-Burton, who noted that she had lived on the creek, expressed concern that addressing projects out of sequence could result in additional costs. The Reach 4 project was ranked number 10 on the engineering firm's priority list, according to discussion during the meeting.
Ray Silva-Reyes, director of public works, acknowledged the validity of Bennett-Burton’s concerns but explained that the project had been in the pipeline before his tenure.
"You're absolutely right... I would have done your priorities and gone down the list and that's how I tend to move forward," Silva-Reyes said. "This is a project that started before me."
A representative from Freese and Nichols, the engineering firm that conducted the original 2018 creek study, confirmed that priority ranking matters for project effectiveness.
"The priority ranking does have a significant... that's why we order them right in that priority order," the representative explained. "If they are close to in close proximity then you could be doing something downstream that affects the upstream site."
The erosion control project stems from a comprehensive study that began in 2018, when Freese and Nichols was hired to assess Farmers Branch Creek. The study identified multiple projects needed throughout the creek system, with this particular section classified as the "Webb Chapel area high risk."
In January 2022, the city council approved a professional services agreement with Nathan D. Maier Consulting Engineers Inc. for the design phase. The final construction plans were completed in March 2025.
The project received five bids ranging from Stoic Civil Construction's low bid of $1.8 million to a high of $3.08 million from TREG Erosion Control Specialists. The engineer's original cost estimate was $1.9 million.
Silva-Reyes explained the city's procurement process, noting that projects are advertised for two weeks in public newspapers, with pre-bid meetings held for contractors to ask questions. Bids are opened publicly in the council chambers, and staff then checks references and backgrounds of the apparent low bidder.
"We checked the references,” Silva-Reyes said of Stoic Civil Construction. “Everything checks out for them and so we recommend awarding the project to them."
Councilman Roger Neal supported Bennett-Burton’s concerns about following engineering recommendations. "We paid an engineering firm to help us prioritize," Neal said. "I would agree with her that we should probably be doing them in the order that was engineered."
Additional concerns were raised by Councilwoman Elizabeth Villafranca about vegetation plans for the project. A resident who lives on the creek had contacted her expressing concerns about proposed sod installation in heavily shaded areas where previous attempts with various grass types had failed.
"There's so much shade back there that planting all of that sod is just not going to be effective because it won't live," Villafranca said.
The representative explained that vegetation helps with erosion control and that the design includes gabion mattresses along with vegetation to address erosion concerns.
Moving forward, Silva-Reyes committed to following priority rankings for future projects. "As we move forward with engineering studies that will be my direction to the team to move forward that way," he said.
The project is expected to take six to eight months to complete and will be funded through the Public Drainage Project Capital Improvement Fund. Silva-Reyes noted that Reach 2 is also currently out to bid, indicating the city is working to catch up on previously planned projects.
In other business, the council tabled a separate $3.2 million water main replacement project until the July 1 meeting pending additional information about project prioritization criteria. The council also approved annual board and commission appointments for 2025, with the exception of the Valwood Improvement Authority appointment, which was delayed to allow review of a second candidate.
The meeting concluded after an executive session with no action taken.
---
Local news matters.
