Tuesday, November 03, 2009 at 3:37 p.m.
Read more: Local, State, Texas Attorney General's Office, Greg Abbott, Colonia, Lawsuit, Nueces County, Texas
MCALLEN, TEXAS (AP) -- Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has sued a south Texas developer for creating a new colonia by selling lots without the basic water and wastewater services required by law.
According to the state's lawsuit, Tracy L. Long has been selling lots at Sweet Water Estates in rural Nueces County for several years in violation of the state's colonia prevention law.
It requires the developer to ensure that residential lots have water and wastewater facilities.
The state is asking a judge to keep Long from selling any more of the lots and to force him to pay for the minimum services required by law. Long has sold 15 of the project's 64 lots.
Long did not immediately return a call for comment on Tuesday.
Residential subdivisions lacking such basic infrastructure are common along the Texas-Mexico border and known as colonias.
Click here for a full copy of the Texas AG's lawsuit
(Copyright ©2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
