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Cove Leader-Press

With the majority of Coryell County and Central Texas under extreme drought conditions, Copperas Cove Mayor Dan Yancey issued a proclamation on Tuesday that the city’s water customers are now under mandatory Stage 2 water restrictions.

Stage 2 triggering is part of the Brazos River Authority’s (BRA) Drought Contingency Plan. Each city has its own plan, and they differ from city to city.

For Lake Belton, the Stage 2 trigger level is 578.7 feet according to the plan.

On Tuesday, Aug. 1, the level dropped to 578.69 feet.

Water customers are asked to reduce water consumption by at least 15 percent.

Watering the lawn with hose-end sprinklers or automatic irrigation systems is limited to once a week, in the following schedule, between midnight to 10 a.m. or from 8 p.m. until midnight.

Last Digit of Street Address Ends in -- Designated Watering Day

0 or 1 -- Monday

2 or 3 -- Tuesday

4 or 5 -- Wednesday

6 or 7 -- Thursday

8 or 9 -- Friday

Residents may use a hand-held hose, a faucet filled bucket or watering can of five gallons or less, or drip irrigation system, at any time.

Washing any motor vehicle, motorbike, boat, trailer, airplane or other vehicle is prohibited except on designated watering days between the hours of midnight and 10 a.m. and between 8 p.m. and midnight and may be done with a hand-held bucket.

Washing may be done at any time on the immediate premises of a commercial car wash or commercial service station.

The only exception for washing a vehicle is if the health, safety, and welfare of the public is contingent upon frequent vehicle cleansing, such as garbage trucks and vehicles used to transport food and perishables.

Filling indoor or outdoor swimming pools, wading pools, or jacuzzi-type pools is prohibited except on designated watering days.

The use of water from hydrants is limited to firefighting, related activities, or other activities necessary to maintain public health, safety, and welfare, except that use of waste from designated fire hydrants for construction purposes may be allowed under special permit from the City of Copperas Cove.

All restaurants are prohibited from serving water to patrons except upon request of the patron.

Kevin Keller, Director of Public Relations for the City of Copperas Cove, explained why Copperas Cove and other cities have different rules for water conservation.

“Some are asking why Killeen can irrigate two times per week and Copperas Cove only one time per week. The simple answer is that City of Killeen has their own Plan which they follow and we follow ours, as adopted by City Council,” Keller wrote in an email. “One consideration is that BCWCID1 and City of Killeen’s Stage 2 calls for a 10 percent reduction; ours is for 15 percent reduction.

“Additionally, Copperas Cove is essentially at the end of the line for those receiving resources from BCWCID1 so we need to do our part to ensure adequate resources are available.”

He likewise addressed questions about why commercial carwashes may continue to operate.

“While we cannot necessarily confirm all carwashes utilize reclaimed or non-potable water, we do believe that most have that included in part of their system. It’s also important to consider the fact that these are commercial businesses, the owners of which livelihood are dependent on providing services and it would be detrimental to just shut them all down at this point in Stage 2,” Keller said. “Carwash operations are affected in the Stage 4 response during extreme water shortage conditions.”

During Stage 2, restaurants are prohibited from serving water unless patrons request it.

Likewise, nonessential water uses are prohibited to include washing sidewalks, driveways, washing buildings, using water for dust control, and flushing gutters. Filling, refilling, or adding water to a pool or Jacuzzi may be done only during those designated hours and days.

Using water from fire hydrants is limited to firefighting related activities or when necessary to maintain public health, safety and welfare.

Water may be made available from designated hydrants for construction purposes only under a special permit from the City.

Irrigation of golf courses is prohibited, except during designated times and days, unless golf course utilizes a separate water source.

C.J. Sowell has played Santa for the Copperas Cove community for years. Now, residents are being asked to send him letters about how he has impacted their lives.

COPPERAS COVE, Texas — Copperas Cove residents are writing letters to Santa this year, but not to ask for gifts, but to give one instead.

C.J. Sowell has brought joy to many children by playing Santa Claus for the Copperas Cove community for the past 15 years.

Sadly, Sowell has now been placed on hospice care for thyroid cancer, which Julie Moser, a friend of Sowell's, says has spread to his brain.

A local nonprofit has set up a community mailbox where residents can write letters to Sowell telling him how much he has meant to them, in order to bring joy to the man who brought it to so many others.

"His eyes light up when we talked about the letters so I can see he's understanding what we're telling him and showing him about how this community loves him," said Moser. "Because he's the one who's done it for everybody and now's our chance to do it for him."

The "Letter to Santa" box can be found at the Raising Cane's restaurant off US-190 East in Copperas Cove. Community members, friends and anyone else whose life Sowell touched is asked to write him a letter, thanking him for his time, generosity, memories or anything else they would like to say to their beloved Santa.

Moser, who is also the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Pink Warrior Angels, which supports cancer survivors going through active treatment, has also set up a fundraiser for Sowell through the organization. 100% of the donations will go to the Sowell family.

A link to the fundraiser can be found here.

Moser said once all of the letters are collected, they will be pinned on the walls of Sowell's home.

Those who are unable to make it to the community mailbox can also send Sowell their letters of appreciation to P.O. box 295 Copperas Cove, Texas 76522.

"Pray for a miracle, never give up hope and if you want to reach out and help the family, do so," said Moser.

More from 6 News:

The Optimist Club Thrift Store will be relocating to a location it previously operated out of 12 years ago

KWTX News 10 at 10P

COPPERAS COVE, Texas (KWTX) - In early March, the Optimist Club Thrift Store in Copperas Cove, a nonprofit benefiting families and children, received an alarming notice from its landlord that could’ve forced the store to close indefinitely.

“We got a certified letter in the mail that said we had to be out by the 5th of May, which is heartbreaking,” Tanja Ridings, the store manager of the Optimist Club Thrift Store, told KWTX.

“It’s very sad, not only for us but I think for the community,” Linda Makinson, the president of the Optimist Club of Copperas Cove, said of the store possibly shutting down.

Finding a new space for the nonprofit, which has operated out of a storefront in the Copperas Cove Terrace for nearly 10 years, would be a challenge given all of the racks and racks of donated clothes, toys, bedding and more that they would need to relocate.

Ridings said she was looking for spaces that possessed certain criteria.

“It should be an open floor plan, and we would need at least 2,000 square feet,” Ridings said.

With the help of the community, Makinson and Ridings were able to find the thrift store a new home at 105 East Avenue E in Copperas Cove, which just so happens to be a building that the nonprofit operated out of in its early years.

“When the club first started, we were staying here for free for a few months until we found the Cove Terrace location,” Makinson said. “So it’s come full circle for us to come back.”

Formerly Hawaiian Grill, the vacant space sits just half a mile away from the current storefront, and encompasses over 3,000 square feet.

But it doesn’t come without its challenges. Makinson and Ridings say the new store requires a lot of work before they can move in.

“The roof is leaking and the air conditioning does not work,” Makinson told KWTX. “The flooring needs to be redone, and a lot of cleaning, a lot of grease and dirt in there. It needs a really deep clean out, and then painting.”

With just weeks left before the big move, the store is asking for the community’s help, whether it’s tradespeople who can repair the roof and AC, or even just extra hands to help move boxes.

“We have a GoFundMe as well on our website for those who wish to donate,” Makinson said. “And just community support. Any help we can get is greatly appreciated. We have a goal and now we just have to work to get there.”

Those interested in learning more about how to help can do so here.

Copyright 2023 KWTX. All rights reserved.

Cove Leader-Press

The whole of Coryell County is now under extreme drought conditions.

Since August 2022, the City of Copperas Cove has been under voluntary Stage 1 water conservation and restrictions.

According to the city’s drought contingency plan for Stage 1, residents should be limiting watering their yards and other landscaped areas to two days a week, between the hours of midnight and 10 a.m., and 8 p.m. to midnight.

“Outdoor water use should be limited between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., except when a hand-held hose, a faucet-filled bucket, or a watering can of five (5) gallons or less is used.”

The goal is to achieve a five to 10 percent reduction in the city’s overall daily water demand.

The City of Copperas Cove purchases its water from Bell County Water Control Improvement District No. 1, which pulls water from both Lake Belton and Stillhouse Hollow Lakes, and in turn, sells the water to area cities.

“With current drought conditions we anticipate the possibility of entering Stage 2 later this summer, but nothing confirmed yet,” Kevin Keller, Public Relations Director for the City of Copperas Cove, stated on Tuesday. “Stage 1 includes voluntary conservation measures to encourage the responsible use of water resources. The City encourages all residents to do their part to conserve where they can.”

So far, other cities under Stage 1 also include the cities of Belton and Killeen. The City of Lampasas initiated Stage 2 on July 11.

As of July 20, Lake Belton was 63.5 percent full, with a mean water level of 579.38 feet. Six months ago, Lake Belton was at 65.2 percent capacity. However, one year ago, Lake Belton was at 81.8 percent capacity.

The Brazos River Authority (BRA) protects and watches the water resources of the Brazos River Basin and has five stages of its drought contingency plan.

The trigger for Stage 2 is a level of 578.7 feet at Lake Belton, which is 0.68 feet, or about 8.16 inches lower than the lake level on Thursday.

For Stillhouse Hollow Lake and Lake Georgetown, the Stage 2 drought warning trigger is based on overall water storage, which is 164,789 acre-feet for both bodies of water. The level at Stillhouse was 606.86 feet, and 776.90 feet at Lake Georgetown.

As of Thursday, both reservoirs had a combined acre-footage storage of 170,132, which is 5,343 acre-feet above the Stage 2 threshold.

Should Stage 2 triggering criteria be met, Copperas Cove will have a goal to decrease its daily water demand by 15 percent. The City itself will reduce or discontinue flushing of water mains, reduce or discontinue irrigation of public landscaped areas. However, the use of reclaimed water for non-potable purposes will be allowed.

Stage 2 limits lawn and landscape watering to once a week, with the day depending on the last digit of a resident’s street address, 0 or 1 on Monday, 2 or 3 on Tuesday, 4 or 5 on Wednesday, 6 or 7 on Thursday, 8 or 9 on Friday. As an added measure for Stage 2, washing vehicles is also limited to those same days, as well as limiting filling of pools, and watering golf courses, to those designated days. Vehicle washing should be done with a bucket and hose with a shutoff nozzle that allows for quick rinsing. Vehicle washing at a commercial car wash is permissible at any time.

During Stage 2, restaurants are prohibited from serving water unless patrons request it.

Likewise, nonessential water uses are prohibited to include washing sidewalks, driveways, washing buildings, using water for dust control, and flushing gutters.

Some areas, however, have already entered Stage 3 conservation and restrictions.

Neighboring Kempner Water Supply Corporation customers have been urged to follow Stage 3 restrictions so they do not run out of water. KWSC provides water to some residents who live just outside Copperas Cove, as well as Kempner and the City of Lampasas.

On July 7, the corporation’s General Manager, Bruce Sorenson, announced that Stillhouse Lake, its only source of water, is at a “critically low level” and is dropping one inch every two days.

“When the water level reaches 605 feet elevation, water production at our plant will slow down and (at) 604 feet, production will stop. We are installing an extension in August that will give us a lower intake level and potentially buy us some time. Please be aware that we are not seeing much conservation of water in our system. If the lake level drops to 606 feet elevation, we will be forced to implement stage IV Water Conservation restrictions which are stricter and will not allow you to use your irrigation systems or fill a pool, only hand watering with a bucket will be authorized. Conservation enforcement will include fines for excessive use,” Sorenson said.

The City of Georgetown issued emergency Stage 3 through Sept. 4 for the western side of the city in certain areas.

Cove Leader-Press

Veterans in the Copperas Cove area need not let the driving distance keep them from receiving healthcare locally through the Central Texas VA system.

For the past eight months, Copperas Cove has had a community-based VA Clinic that is willing to help veterans access their healthcare efficiently and offer some of the same services as the facility in Temple.

The VA Clinic in Copperas Cove is in the Town Square Shopping Center on the city’s west end and opened its doors in October 2022.

Potomac Healthcare Solutions is the company with a 10-year contract with the Veterans Administration to operate the clinic in Copperas Cove for the VA.

Earnest “Buck” Benton is the Executive Vice President of Potomac Healthcare Solutions, based in Woodbridge, VA.

“We’re a service-disabled veteran-owned small business. Two senior partners and I are retired Navy Medical Service Corps officers and were enlisted Hospital Corpsman prior to being commissioned from enlisted ranks,” Benton said of his service record. “Our company is now around 13 years old. We like to think of it as, we’re veterans taking care of veterans.”

The company’s goal is to build and run VA clinics, as the VA solicits for companies to bid, build, and run the medical facilities.

Potomac Healthcare Solutions has another clinic in Granbury, Texas. Valor Healthcare has approximately 45 clinics around the nation.

“Jointly, we provide care to veterans, second only to the VA itself,” he said.

The north Georgia resident has spent a lot of time in Copperas Cove and is excited his company has been able to open the facility to serve veterans.

Benton said the clinic has the capacity to serve 7,200 veterans. When the VA put out the call for a clinic project in Copperas Cove, Benton said that at that point it was estimated there were 14,000 to 30,000 veterans in the area.

The clinic itself has two full-time physicians on board, plus four midlevel service providers to include physician assistants and nurse practitioners. Then, after another physician completes the process of joining the VA as a provider, the Copperas Cove clinic will have as many as eight providers on board.

Currently, the clinic is serving about 2,000 patients, but Benton is hoping for more.

Unfortunately, there was what Benton called a “rumor mill” that was going around that the clinic was “just a storefront for telehealth.”

Benton said that’s simply not true, although the clinic does offer some telehealth services.

“We have staff, who are veterans or family members of veterans or active duty who want to help take care of veterans in the community.”

One of those veterans is Toccarra Custis, an area resident for 27 years.

Custis is the Clinic Administrator and has served as an Army medic, a surgical assistant at Darnall Army Medical Center, and has a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.

“The clinic provides primary care, mental health care, social work healthcare, and also includes care such as battlefield acupuncture, meditation, different things that encompass the whole person’s health,” Custis said. Also, all clinic providers have a women’s healthcare designation, meaning that they can provide gynecologic services for female veterans.

“We have a women veteran population of about 30 percent,” she added. “So, women’s health is very important to the VA even more so now than ever.”

With telehealth services, the facility also offers patient education classes and nutrition classes.

The clinic, like a typical medical clinic, provides laboratory services, similar to a civilian facility across the road from the Cove VA.

Patients can have lab drawn in Copperas Cove and a courier transports those samples to Temple, like the civilian facility counterpart. The clinic does not provide imaging services.

Clinic hours are Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., with the lab opening at 7:30 and medical providers start seeing patients at 8:00.

Custis said veterans are welcome to give her a call so they can have a tour of the facility.

“They can see if this is the best fit for them,” she said. They can call the offices at 254-899-6000.

“The best way is to come out and see our faces, and let us see them.”

Those who are interested in establishing care with the VA Clinic in Copperas Cove don’t need a referral.

Custis said she spoke to a local civic club, and some club members divulged that they haven’t seen a VA or medical provider in more than 10 years.

“One had never seen a provider within the VA and he had gotten out in the 80s,” she said. “We do have the means to help veterans make sure they are eligible.”

Within a matter of minutes, they can help a veteran complete the required eligibility forms to receive care locally in Copperas Cove.

The clinic can also help smooth the way and make some of the “red tape” go away.

“For instance, we had a veteran who needed a handicap placard, and his disability rating was not in his chart. He had gotten out earlier this year. The situation was frustrating to him. He said, ‘I called this number and that number.’ I asked him about his paperwork that showed his disability rating, and he gave it to me. I was able to contact one of the administrative personnel at the main VA campus, who got it right into his chart. It’s good to know that we have those resources. I’ve found so many resources and so many helpful people to make sure that this clinic is successful.”

Custis said that as a longtime resident and now as a civilian, she’s thankful that veterans have a clinic in this area.

Custis said if a veteran has been seen within the Central Texas VA healthcare system, at any of the clinics to include Temple, Brownwood, LaGrange, Cedar Park, Austin, or Waco, they can come in and transfer care immediately.

If they haven’t been seen in the past 36 months within the local VA system, they must complete the eligibility form, which the Copperas Cove clinic submits to Temple to get them enrolled, and then they can get an appointment scheduled and establish care.

Custis said that eligibility process can come through within a day.

Soldiers who are transitioning from the military can have their records sent to the Copperas Cove VA Clinic as part of that process. Those who need specialty care can get referrals to the VA facility in Temple, or perhaps an outside provider if necessary.