Just seeing if anyone ever goes fishing there? If so, are there plenty of places to go fishing from the banks? I only remember going there as a kid but we were always in a boat, and that's been 40 years ago.

Jbob04 said:

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Pretty sure it's closed to the public now.

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Yeah thats what I had thought too, but read something that made me think it may be open. But I guess that was outdated material. Thanks

Still nice bass in there

I remember when it 1st opened back in the 80's and it caused havoc with the phone company because all the fishermen were trying to make reservations to secure a spot.

Last I knew it was bought by some local guys as an investment with the plan being to chop it up into high dollar home sites. Think that was put on hold due to some type of environmental contamination and haven't heard anything else in a while.

If the grass came back from not spraying, it could get back to being great. Very good fish were there but it was erratic when the plant only operated occasionally. It might be better just from having stabilized to be a normal lake with little to no fishing.

We have some friends that have property out there. It was divided and sold off apparently. We've gone tubing out there with them and their kids fish the lake.

Not only an awesome bass lake in the 80's, but it was also an even better crappie lake.

BrownDeerAggie said:

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Not only an awesome bass lake in the 80's, but it was also an even better crappie lake.

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This. I had a neighbor when I was little who fished that lake religiously and would catch his limit just about every time

What is the consensus here? Can regular people fish there now? Or do you have to be a property owner?

Don't know if they have sold property to public yet. Only people who fish there are a select few with permission. I'm not one of those.

What part of what you said and deleted was the problem?

the first part.

TPWD screwed the pooch on obtaining the property late last year. Different than their failure at Fairfield but their arrogance was their downfall.

Thought it was going to be turned into a housing development. Definitely not open to public any more

MS08 said:

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Thought it was going to be turned into a housing development. Definitely not open to public any more

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About 10 years ago I sat through an online presentation by a development group that planned to make GCR a "camp creek" type of place. Houses in the 2000+ sqft range, paved roads, commercial pads for restaurants and retail, presentation was really cool and I was excited to see someone had a good plan for the place after it's decommissioning as a power plant. Apparently those plans fell through. I have heard several reasons (couldn't get all of the land, EPA regs, numbers didn't work etc), however an upscale lake community 20 minutes from campus would sell out pretty quickly IMHO.

What's the scale of Gibbons Creek lake to Camp Creek Lake? Yes, I remember there was a thread here on TA about this possible lake development - seemed exciting to folks. Wonder what the land acquisition cost number is.

Geronimo Energy going to do a data center there. Wouldn't be surprised if there is some sort of power plant proposal in the plan. Makes sense from their side. Can sell the excess electricity onto the grid with minimal infrastructure add.

This plan has been in progress for years and the citizens are just now starting to get wind of it. Mid South has been rerouting power around the Carlos/Keith area for a year now in anticipation for all of this. They are doing a massive expansion on the Carlos substation (off of CR 192 by Rock Lake Ranch) and re-routed substation distribution lines through the properties between it and Highway 30. They are working to move that whole area off of the Keith substation while also expanding the Keith substation so it can solely feed these new data center and battery storage facilities going in at Gibbons.

When they leveled the TMPA plant at Gibbons, they kept the switch yard up and operational. It's the most northern tie-in to the Houston grid for ERCOT. The data centers and battery storage facilities are coming. Momentum Power is already in place in the footprint of the old plant.

A couple of years ago, there were some permits on the TCEQ website showing the private owners of the lake requesting their right of access permit to pull water from the Navasota River to be changed. The old permit was under permissions to pull water in order to maintain a safe lake level for the power plant operation. The new request was so they could pull a certain amount of water from the Navasota River to sell via release at the lake and downstream purchase by Dow Chemicals in Freeport.

The big question/theory remaining is who actually bought the 11,000 acres off of FM 244. That sale maintained direct access to the switch yard at Gibbons via the old mine construction road that goes under Highway 30 in Carlos. With the battery storage and data center announcement, it would only make sense that a massive solar farm is coming to the old mines, but I guess we shall see.

MS08 said:

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What's the scale of Gibbons Creek lake to Camp Creek Lake?

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GCR is substantially larger

Quote:

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Size Comparison

Gibbons Creek Reservoir ~2,770 acres
Camp Creek Lake ~750 acres

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I have been fortunate to have access to Gibbons last year through a friend. Probably went a half dozen times. Fishing was fantastic.....bass, crappie, and white bass.

My friend called one of the owners for us to go again and he said they are in the process of selling it. They didn't want anyone entering the property because they were in the process of doing surveys, engineering plans, etc....and didn't want others entering the gate.

The owner wouldn't elaborate on who they were selling to.....but I don't think the lake will end up being a residential community.

Is there a fly ash landfill out there?

I think Adam Sinn bought the old lignite tracts

CS78 said:

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oklaunion said:

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TPWD screwed the pooch on obtaining the property late last year. Different than their failure at Fairfield but their arrogance was their downfall.

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Here's a little secret. TPWD keeps screwing these up because they don't want any more public property. People will demand access to a lake. Theyd much rather a private company get these places than they have to do any actual work and provide something for the public. Just look into the properties that have been donated to them that are just sitting there off limits to you and I, how many WMAs that are off limits to hunting and fishing. Their management plan for managing pressure on public property is to reduce access, rather than provide more property.

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North Texas' Newest State Park Opens March 1: 4,871 Acres Of Trails, Lake & Camping

https://dallasexpress.com/metroplex/north-texas-newest-state-park-opens-march-1-4871-acres-of-trails-lake-camping/



Park Expansion
Help Us Plan the Future of Enchanted Rock!
TPWD recently added over 3,700 acres to the natural area, more than doubling its size.

https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/enchanted-rock/development

Or, maybe not...

"Grimes Co. Citizens Against Data Centers but For Responsible Growth" posted this on their facebook page.

GIBBONS CREEK DATA CENTER!
If you weren't concerned about the coming Data Plant to the Iola/Bedias area... this one might get your attention!
Millennium Power, Inc. is spearheading a major redevelopment of the former Gibbons Creek Steam Electric Station in Grimes County, Texas, to establish a high-tech data center and sustainable energy hub. In partnership with Atlas Power, the project aims to revitalize the retired coal plant site into a center for AI, technology, and green energy infrastructure.
Project Details & Location
Site Address: 12824 FM 244, Anderson, TX 77830.
Acquisition: Millennium Power officially acquired a portion of the Gibbons Creek facility in December 2023 from the Texas Municipal Power Agency.
Partnership: The operation is a joint venture with Atlas Power, a company focused on data center operations and sustainable technology led by Millennium's Chairman, Kevin Washington.
Economic & Infrastructure Impact
Investment: The initial construction phase is estimated at nearly $500 million.
Job Creation: The project is expected to create approximately 200 jobs in the energy, data, and AI sectors for the Brazos Valley area.
Energy Strategy: The facility will utilize a "private grid" approach, integrating natural gas turbines, solar, and battery storage to support rapid digital growth without straining the existing Texas electric grid.
Community Benefit: The redevelopment is designed to provide substantial tax revenue for Grimes County and local school districts by repurposing existing transmission systems and rail infrastructure.
Site History
Former Use: The site previously housed a coal-fired power plant that operated from 1982 until its retirement in 2018.
Remediation: Before Millennium's acquisition, Charah Solutions managed the decommissioning and implosion of the old plant (completed in 2021) and oversaw environmental remediation of ash ponds and landfills.

The main complaints against these data centers are water and electrical strain on existing grids. It appears they will use the surface water in Gibbons and provide their own electricity while stimulating the natural gas industry. Seems rational.

woodometer said:

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"Grimes Co. Citizens Against Data Centers but For Responsible Growth" posted this on their facebook page.

GIBBONS CREEK DATA CENTER!
If you weren't concerned about the coming Data Plant to the Iola/Bedias area... this one might get your attention!
Millennium Power, Inc. is spearheading a major redevelopment of the former Gibbons Creek Steam Electric Station in Grimes County, Texas, to establish a high-tech data center and sustainable energy hub. In partnership with Atlas Power, the project aims to revitalize the retired coal plant site into a center for AI, technology, and green energy infrastructure.
Project Details & Location
Site Address: 12824 FM 244, Anderson, TX 77830.
Acquisition: Millennium Power officially acquired a portion of the Gibbons Creek facility in December 2023 from the Texas Municipal Power Agency.
Partnership: The operation is a joint venture with Atlas Power, a company focused on data center operations and sustainable technology led by Millennium's Chairman, Kevin Washington.
Economic & Infrastructure Impact
Investment: The initial construction phase is estimated at nearly $500 million.
Job Creation: The project is expected to create approximately 200 jobs in the energy, data, and AI sectors for the Brazos Valley area.
Energy Strategy: The facility will utilize a "private grid" approach, integrating natural gas turbines, solar, and battery storage to support rapid digital growth without straining the existing Texas electric grid.
Community Benefit: The redevelopment is designed to provide substantial tax revenue for Grimes County and local school districts by repurposing existing transmission systems and rail infrastructure.
Site History
Former Use: The site previously housed a coal-fired power plant that operated from 1982 until its retirement in 2018.
Remediation: Before Millennium's acquisition, Charah Solutions managed the decommissioning and implosion of the old plant (completed in 2021) and oversaw environmental remediation of ash ponds and landfills.

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This is awesome, economically and in terms of geographic fit

Have i missed it, or has KBTX totally missed on this local news story so far ?

BucketofBalls99 said:

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BrownDeerAggie said:

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Not only an awesome bass lake in the 80's, but it was also an even better crappie lake.

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This. I had a neighbor when I was little who fished that lake religiously and would catch his limit just about every time

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I would expect that if you pray while fishing, you should catch your limit.