Pflugerville staff report progress on $500 million in utility projects including water plant expansion, 15‑mile raw water line and new wastewater plant

Pflugerville City staff briefed the Capital Improvement Advisory Committee on a semiannual update of the city’s capital improvement program, reporting roughly 61 active projects, 38 in design and 23 in construction, and noting three large utility projects amounting to about $500 million in active construction.

The report centered on three major utility efforts: the expansion of the city’s surface water treatment plant from about 17.7 million gallons per day to 30 million gallons per day; a 15‑mile secondary raw water pipeline and pump‑station project to increase raw water delivery capacity; and the Wilbarger regional wastewater treatment facility, a new Greenfield plant with 6,000,000 gallons per day capacity. Brandon Pritchett, Pflugerville’s utility director, led the presentation of the utility items.

Why it matters: the projects together increase raw water supply, treatment capacity and local wastewater treatment to support growth and to reduce reliance on distant pump and lift station configurations. City staff said the Wilbarger plant will allow gravity conveyance of wastewater that currently must be pumped over long distances, enabling the decommissioning of multiple existing lift stations.

Details from the presentation

- Water treatment plant expansion: Staff said construction has progressed from initial site work to vertical construction on the new membrane building and installation of pretreatment plate settlers and clarifiers. The expansion is intended to increase permitted treatment capacity from approximately 17,700,000 gpd to 30,000,000 gpd and to maintain regulatory compliance for the city’s surface water system. Brandon Pritchett described ongoing equipment installations and completed water‑tightness testing on clarifiers.

- Secondary Colorado River raw water line: The project is a roughly 15‑mile pipeline plus pump station work to double the city’s ability to divert water from the Lower Colorado River Authority. Pritchett told the committee the pipeline crosses multiple jurisdictions — including City of Austin and Travis County — and that right‑of‑way, easement acquisitions, interlocal agreements and memoranda of understanding were significant early hurdles. He said there are three construction contracts (pump station, a City of Austin jurisdiction segment, and a Travis County/other jurisdiction segment) and that all three contracts are under construction, with clearing underway and pipe installation scheduled for the coming months.

- Wilbarger Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility: Staff described this as a Greenfield facility located along Greg Lane (address listed as Manor but inside Pflugerville city limits) sized for 6,000,000 gpd. Pritchett said construction has moved to vertical work on aeration basins and noted deep caisson excavations (about 60 feet) for wet wells. The new interceptor conveyance work to connect to the plant uses Hobas (fiberglass‑reinforced) pipe and polymer concrete manholes; staff said they selected those materials to extend asset life and to reduce long‑term operations and maintenance costs.

Funding and partners

Staff said many of the utility projects have been funded or supported through the Texas Water Development Board and federal financing programs (staff referenced the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency financing program commonly used for water infrastructure projects). Pritchett emphasized that favorable financing terms helped lower costs for ratepayers compared with open‑market borrowing.

What the committee asked and staff responses

Committee members asked about staffing and execution for the portfolio of projects moving toward bid. Pritchett said the hardest work is in the early stages obtaining easements and negotiating with landowners and that construction of pipelines typically progresses faster once those initial hurdles are cleared. A committee member asked whether all three raw water contracts are active; Pritchett confirmed they are.

No formal committee votes or motions were taken during the update; staff requested the semiannual report be filed with the city secretary as part of the city’s reporting responsibilities under state law.

Ending

City staff said the program includes additional pipeline and rehabilitation projects that will follow the three large projects, and that those projects are sequenced to pair new construction with rehabilitation of older buried infrastructure. The committee received the update and asked follow‑up questions; staff indicated construction and permitting milestones in the coming months.