Fannin County, Texas -- It all started with a dream that some city leaders in Ladonia had about 35 years ago, a dream to spur economic development, secure water for the future, control erosion and create recreational opportunities. About 25 years ago, they took their vision of a lake in southeast Fannin County to Upper Trinity Regional Water District.

Tuesday, February 4, 2025, a crowd gathered for a ceremonial signing of the final section to be installed on a 32-mile pipeline that will transport up to 54 million gallons of water per day from Lake Ralph Hall to the communities Upper Trinity serves in Denton and Collin counties.

Located on the North Sulphur River near Ladonia, the 7,600-acre Lake Ralph Hall, scheduled for completion in 2026, will be Texas' newest lake and one of the state's largest water projects in over 30 years. As challenging as it is to build a lake in Texas, impounding water behind the 2.3-mile Leon Hurse Dam is only one facet of this project. A pump station and a balancing reservoir are needed to move water through the new pipeline and into Upper Trinity Regional Water District's water-delivery system.

Larry Patterson, P.E., Executive Director of UTRWD was the keynote speaker at the ceremonial signing and Ed Motley, P.E., Lake Ralph Hall Program Manager for UTRWD, also addressed the crowd.

Larry Patterson, P.E., Executive Director, UTRWD

The 66-inch and 72-inch spiral-welded steel pieces of pipe were manufactured locally by AMERICAN SpiralWeld Pipe in Paris, TX.

The pipeline was completed through extensive collaboration between engineering, construction and consulting firms, including:
• Garney Construction (Construction Manager At Risk for the pipeline, control station and balancing reservoir),
• Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam, Inc. (control station design, pipeline alignment and design),
• Black & Veatch Corporation (pipeline engineering),
• Jacobs Engineering Group (pipeline and balancing reservoir engineering),
• Freese & Nichols, Inc. (pump station design),
• Archer Western Construction, LLC (pump station construction), and
• AR Consultants (cultural resources)

Ed Motley, P.E., Lake Ralph Hall Program Manager, UTRWD

Ian K. Willoughby, Sales Manager

Andrew Beck, Area Manager, Garney Construction

Jason Pierce (right), Manager of Governmental Affairs and Communications, UTRWD, discusses one of the displays set up at the ceremonial signing.

The Trolley de Paris shuttled the crowd from downtown Ladonia to the site of the ceremonial pipe signing.

photos by Allen Rich