Council authorizes engineering design for Copperas Branch Lake lift station to reduce overflows

The Highland Village City Council on May 13 authorized a task order with Schaumburg & Polk, Inc., for professional engineering services to design a new lift station at Copperas Branch Lake.

City staff said the existing lift station has come close to flooding during high lake events and that the current configuration causes intermittent overflows from manholes when the station reaches about 80 percent capacity. Staff described plans to site a new, deeper lift station on an identified easement at DoubleTree Ranch Park to reduce flood risk, improve wet-well performance, and provide pre-treatment to keep wastewater from becoming septic during the long pump times from upstream subdivisions. Staff estimated preliminary construction costs at a little over $2.5 million and said construction funding would be proposed as part of a utility and street bond to be considered in September; staff also said design could be completed by the end of summer and construction bid late winter, with the city avoiding a $780,000 repair the regional operator had planned.

Council approved the task order for design services by motion; the vote was recorded 7-0. Staff said the design work will be incorporated in the city’s capital improvement planning and that the proposed lift station location is shown on plats and provides freeboard above historic lake levels.