GAINESVILLE, Texas — Gainesville City Council has authorized submission of a $21 million grant application to replace the Moss Lake raw-water pump station, a project city materials describe as central to long-term water reliability.
According to a July 15 compilation of the city’s June 16, 2026, council action, the application would go to the Texas Water Development Board. The proposed scope is replacement of the Moss Lake 8.6-million-gallons-per-day raw-water pump station. The same summary lists no local match and describes the request as a 100% grant application.
What council authorized — and what it did not
Authorization to submit an application is not a construction award and not a notice to proceed. No contractor is assigned in the available project summary. An eventual TWDB decision would still be required before design, bid and construction schedules firm up.
City materials summarized in the same record say the pump-station replacement was selected because it is already included in the State Water Plan and was viewed as the city’s strongest funding candidate.
Why Moss Lake matters
Moss Lake is Gainesville’s primary surface-water supply source. A pump-station failure or capacity limit would affect residential customers and large users tied to industrial and commercial growth. Project backers frame the replacement as reducing a long-term constraint on housing and industry, including growth nodes that depend on stable municipal water.
Residents should treat the $21 million figure as the application amount, not approved state funding, until the Water Development Board acts. Editors and readers wanting the underlying vote language should check the official June 16 City Council minutes in the city’s Agenda Center.