Perry Son's PE Firm Behind Texarkana Water Sale Plan

TL;DR: Grey Rock Management Partners, a private equity firm co-founded by the son of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, is behind a proposal to sell water from Southwest Arkansas to Texas, according to AlphaMaven's summary of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette report. Texarkana, Arkansas, has taken the first step. Two state approvals still stand between the plan and any sale.

What happened in Texarkana?

The Texarkana, Arkansas, Board of Directors voted to start the process of selling Millwood Lake water to Texas. Per the Texarkana Gazette, the board unanimously passed an ordinance with Mayor Allen Brown absent. It authorizes the Southwest Arkansas Water District to apply on the city's behalf to the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission for an out-of-state water transfer.

If the commission approves, the General Assembly must then approve the plan too, the same report says. The vote was an application, not a sale.

Who is behind the plan?

Griffin Perry is a co-founder and officer of Grey Rock Management Partners, a Dallas-based firm behind the Millwood Lake Water Conveyance Project, per AlphaMaven's summary of the Democrat-Gazette report. That summary also says his father, Rick Perry, is not involved in the proposal.

On the build side, the Dallas Morning News reports that Heartland Water Partners would upgrade the Millwood intake infrastructure and build a 72-inch pipeline to Texas at its own expense. That puts construction cost on the private side.

How much water, and how much money?

The city is asking for permission to sell up to 110 million gallons a day from Millwood Lake, according to the Dallas Morning News. Texarkana currently holds rights to about 150 million gallons a day. City Manager Tyler Richards told the paper the project could bring in between $16 million and $20 million a year in additional revenue, and that over a 40-year contract, with the price paid for water potentially rising, the total could exceed $1 billion.

Those are the city's projections, not audited figures. A 40-year number built on a price path nobody has locked in deserves a long second look.

Item	What the reporting says	Source
Volume requested	Up to 110 million gallons a day	Dallas Morning News
Current water rights	About 150 million gallons a day	Dallas Morning News
City revenue estimate	$16 million to $20 million a year	Dallas Morning News
40-year total	Could exceed $1 billion, per the city manager	Dallas Morning News
Next approvals	Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, then the General Assembly	Texarkana Gazette

Every revenue line in that table is an estimate from the city, and none is a contract.

Why should an accredited investor care?

This is a deal where the paper comes long before the money. A sponsor can put a 40-year revenue projection in a pitch deck today, and the approvals that decide whether it ever happens sit months or years away.

So ask who pays if approval fails. Here, the reporting says the builder carries the infrastructure cost. Whether outside investors are involved is not reported. If a sponsor ever brings you something shaped like this, ask for realized results instead of projections, and read how IRR is used to sell private equity returns first. DPI shows the cash that actually came back, and the 12-point private equity fund checklist covers the rest of what to check before you write the check.

Common mistakes when reading a story like this

The first is treating a city's revenue estimate as a forecast. It comes from a city manager making the case for a project, and it depends on a price path nobody has confirmed.

The second is reading a council vote as a deal. The ordinance authorized an application and nothing more.

The third is assuming the famous name carries the investment. The Perry surname draws the attention, but the report says the former governor is not involved.

FAQ

Who is behind the Texarkana water deal? Grey Rock Management Partners, a Dallas-based firm co-founded by Griffin Perry, son of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, per the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette as summarized by AlphaMaven. Heartland Water Partners would build the pipeline, per the Dallas Morning News.

How much water would be sold? The city is asking to sell up to 110 million gallons a day from Millwood Lake, according to the Dallas Morning News. Texarkana holds rights to about 150 million gallons a day.

Has the sale been approved? No. The city board approved only an application.

Can individual investors put money into this? Nothing in the reporting says so. Angel Investors Network doesn't sell or allocate securities.

What to do next

The next public step is the application to the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission. When its filings appear, read the sponsor's actual terms before you take any water or infrastructure pitch seriously. To get the next development in stories like this one, sign up for the free AIN briefing.

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