“We want to get it resolved as best we can,” stated Jerry Ballew, Teague Alderman – Place 1, when asked about a recent action taken by Teague City Council.
During a Special Called Meeting on Wednesday, October 2, 2019, Teague’s Board of Aldermen met in closed executive session to consult with their attorneys regarding the pending litigation regarding the City of Teague vs. City of Fairfield civil case.
When the Teague Council reconvened in Open Session, Aldermen voted unanimously to approach the City of Fairfield Council about mediation in the TDCJ lawsuit.
The Original Agreement
In the early 1990’s, the cities of Teague and Fairfield entered into an Agreement in order secure a bond to provide water and wastewater services to the TDCJ Boyd Unit, located between the two cities on Highway 84.
This project was initiated to secure jobs for local residents and help promote economic growth in the area.
The thirty-year bond was set to be fulfilled in 2020.
Journey to Civil Court
In April of 2018, the City of Teague was contacted with a request from the City of Fairfield regarding an early release from the Agreement, set to be completed in 2020, to allow Fairfield to pursue a new proposed bond with TDCJ for expansion and improvements to the water and wastewater facilities.
In September of 2018, Teague answered by filing a lawsuit against Fairfield for breaches of the interlocal agreement and facilities agreement, seeking monetary damages over $200,000 but not more than $1,000,000.
After months in court, the original lawsuit was sent to the Tenth Court of Appeals on April 9, 2019 after District Judge Patrick Simmons granted in part and denied in part Fairfield’s Plea to the Jurisdiction.
Fairfield Moves to End Agreement
Fairfield Council voted to amend their budget during a special Meeting on March 21, 2019 in order to pay off the TDCJ debt in the amount of $130,325.
At that time, Fairfield Mayor Kenny Hughes stated his belief that the acceleration of payment on the debt would facilitate an end to the litigation.
On May 16, 2019, Attorneys for the City of Fairfield officially notified the City of Teague, via certified mail, that the Interlocal Agreement between the two cities was no longer in effect as Fairfield’s debt in connection with the project had been fully paid.
The correspondence went on to request records from the City of Teague regarding their original bond payment to provide evidence that the money Fairfield had paid Teague, over the life of the Interlocal Agreement, had gone towards their debt in connection with the TDCJ project.
Then, on July 9, 2019 Fairfield Council was presented a forensic accounting report that indicated that the City of Teague had be overpaid by $1,063,703 over the life of the Agreement.
Where We Go From Here
It is anticipated that any potential mediation between the two cities would be arranged through their attorneys.
Representing the City of Teague is Messer, Rockefeller, Fort, PLLC.
Representing the City of Fairfield is the AL Law Group, PLLC.