LAFAYETTE PARISH — For more than 10 years, residents in the unincorporated community of Windy Meadows have battled persistent water problems — from brown, discolored water flowing from faucets to days-long outages with no water at all.
“It’s pretty disgusting,” said one resident. “The kids don’t like to mess with it. They don’t like to take baths with it sometimes.”
Another homeowner added, “It’s been brownish tint. The toilets turn brown at the bottom. You have to buy a certain chemical to get it out.”
Many families say they rely on bottled water for drinking, and cooking and. Some also report ongoing plumbing damage caused by the unreliable water supply.
“Pump fails — you’re out of water for three to four days while they test it and wait for results to come back,” one man said. “Gotta constantly buy bottled water.”
Windy Meadows is located just outside the Youngsville city limits, meaning it does not receive municipal water service like residents within city boundaries. Instead, the subdivision has historically relied on a private water company.
Youngsville Mayor Ken Ritter acknowledged the ongoing complaints.
“These residents shop within our city limits. They identify as being part of Youngsville,” Ritter said in an interview.
The water system was recently acquired by Magnolia Water Utility Operating Company, LLC. In a letter to residents, Magnolia said it has been working “diligently to stabilize water quality” and address “long-standing issues caused by naturally occurring manganese and aging infrastructure.”
A new wholesale water agreement was signed on May 17 between Magnolia Water, the City of Youngsville, and Lafayette City-Parish Consolidated Government. Under the agreement, Youngsville will supply water to Magnolia, which will then provide service to Windy Meadows.
“This development is right off of Bonin Road,” Ritter said. “Bonin Road has a water line that taxpayers put in to feed off a line on Ambassador, and since we have that water line outside of Windy Meadows, it only makes sense to tie in to that infrastructure.”
Ritter said the deal will not affect water pressure for existing Youngsville residents, and the city does not anticipate any additional costs for its taxpayers.
Magnolia began work on the tie-in shortly after the agreement was signed, but has not provided a timeline for when clean water will begin flowing to Windy Meadows. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
For residents, the fix can’t come soon enough.
“We’ve been asking for clean water for a long time,” one resident said. “I just hope this actually works.”
