When General Manager Lane Thompson and his crews walk the wooded property surrounding the East Texas Municipal Utility District (MUD), he’s quickly reminded that his small system that serves 774 water and 639 wastewater connections wasn’t built for a town — it was built for an army.

The network of oversized concrete lines dates back to 1943, when Camp Fannin, a World War II replacement training center, operated just outside Tyler, Texas.

“They took almost everything with them when the military left (in 1945),” Thompson said. “What was left became the foundation for a small community water system.”

Eighty years later, those same lines remain in service — aging, oversized, and spread across old training grounds where infiltration and inflow problems persist.

“Every big rainfall exposes another open line somewhere in the woods,” Thompson said. “We find them one by one and fix them. It’s a never-ending process, but we’re making progress.”

Needing help to address those issues while reducing costs from outside contractors, Thompson sought external assistance.

He first connected with Communities Unlimited (CU) about seven years ago through the Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP). CU serves as the Southern RCAP, supporting small systems across seven states, including Texas.

With help from former CU East Texas Coordinator Tom Fulton and former Director of Lending Brynn Bagwell, East Texas MUD secured a $250,000 loan in 2022 to replace an aging fleet — some trucks more than 20 years old — with six new, utility-ready vehicles. When the loan was paid off early and without issue, Thompson knew he’d found a long-term partner in CU.

That partnership deepened in 2025 when CU’s Lending Team referred the district to work with the Community Infrastructure Team and Chad Brown, a Management Specialist based in Tyler. Brown collaborated with Thompson to complete the system’s Technical, Managerial, and Financial (TMF) assessment and Work Plan. Together with CU Senior Economic Development Loan Officer Chris Ranniger, they developed a financing strategy to replace equipment and prepare for future upgrades.

On September 19, 2025, CU approved a $200,000 loan at 3% interest for new infrastructure equipment: two emergency bypass pumps, two equipment trailers, a dump trailer, and an excavator.

“We’d been using backhoes for everything,” Thompson said. “But I’ve never seen a contractor dig a water main with a backhoe. I told the board, ‘If we want to be the best, we have to do what the best does.’ The excavator, pumps, and trailers will let our crew handle more work in-house instead of always calling outside contractors. That saves money and keeps our guys sharp.”

The new equipment replaces outdated machinery, eliminates rental fees, and enhances the district’s emergency response capacity — all while lowering annual operating costs.

For Thompson, CU’s support has been “monumental.” The investments, paired with strong management and reserves, have allowed East Texas MUD to shift from reactive maintenance to proactive planning.

The district is already preparing a third CU loan to take operations to the next level — converting an old shop into a supply warehouse, adding a generator for reliability, and purchasing a skid steer to replace the backhoe.

“It’s a big vision we’re pushing forward, but it’s going to be a total game changer,” Thompson said. “Our old equipment was slow and inefficient. This new gear moves more dirt, faster, and with less effort. The guys are excited because now we can tackle more jobs, keep moving, and keep improving.”

Thompson credits Ranniger and Brown for their professionalism and persistence.