New water storage facilities on tap for South Austin

Two new water storage projects have been approved for South Austin, a region that experienced extensive disruptions to water service during Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 because of its distance from centralized sources of water supply. Last week, City Council gave green lights to  engineering services contracts for the Southwest Parkway Transmission Main and Elevated Reservoir project and the South I-35 Elevated Reservoir project, both which have been part of the city’s Strategic Long-Range Water System Plan but are being accelerated in accordance with recommendations made by the University of Texas Center for Water and the Environment, officials said. “Together, these important system upgrades will also help reduce impacts to our operations during emergencies by strengthening and improving our infrastructure resiliency,” said Shay Ralls Roalson, director of Austin Water. Both of the projects are expected to be complete in 2030. Here are some details about them:

• Southwest Parkway Transmission Main and Elevated Reservoir – Will expand water storage redundancy and system resiliency for customers in the Southwest B Pressure Zone, which is currently served by a single elevated water reservoir. The system enhancement will allow Austin Water crews to conduct maintenance while minimizing impacts to customers.
• South I-35 Elevated Reservoir – Will provide additional storage capacity and resiliency in areas of South and Southeast Austin and improve hydraulic efficiency at a nearby pump station.