Pflugerville engineering staff outline $800 million CIP, updates on water and road projects

Pflugerville City engineering leaders summarized the city's capital program and project schedules at a Feb. 10 work session, detailing major water and transportation projects and how the department prioritizes work.

Evan Vershel, the operations director for transportation, said engineering services are organized into utilities engineering, transportation and drainage, and development engineering, and that those groups lead planning, design and construction of the city's five-year capital improvement program (CIP). "We plan that with budgeting and finance," Vershel said, describing the use of transportation and drainage master plans to define projects and coordinate priorities with advisory committees and council.

Public utilities and engineering director Matt Recker said utility engineering currently manages about 30 CIP projects with a combined value in the neighborhood of $800,000,000. Recker highlighted the water treatment plant expansion, which he described as increasing capacity from roughly 17 million gallons to about 30 million gallons. The project is in construction and Recker said the contractor has requested an extension of approximately 80 days, which would move substantial completion into late spring/early summer and final completion later in the year. "Substantial completion is typically defined as when we are able to use the benefit of the expansion," Recker said.

Council members pressed staff for the basis of the delay and whether the additional time requires council approval; Recker said the current request is a time-only change and, to his understanding, would be handled administratively. He said punch-list items and reestablishing vegetation are typical tasks after substantial completion.

Recker also discussed other major utility projects: a secondary raw water line from the Colorado River with a target substantial-completion window this summer (staff cited a July 26 ballpark target), and a greenfield wastewater treatment plant expansion to about 6 million gallons per day, with substantial completion expected around November and final completion targeted in early 2027.

Vershel summarized transportation work, saying the team manages roughly 36 transportation projects. He named several: Piccadilly Drive/Central Commerce (under construction, scheduled for completion in March 2027), a historic corridor project (completion projected July 2027) and East Louisville Parkway (bid closes March 22; construction start anticipated in May).

On permitting and development review, Recker said development engineering processed about 337 applications last year, ranging from site-disturbance permits to plats and infrastructure plans. He said response time is a common question from developers; staff estimated internal turnaround in the 15-to-20-day range but said they would confirm the precise metrics.

Recker described the department's floodplain work and the impacts of Atlas 14, the revised rainfall dataset. He said FEMA map updates are infrequent and sometimes take years of study and public comment; some jurisdictions are still implementing changes prompted by Atlas 14.

Council members raised local concerns, including safety and right-of-way needs at the Pecan and Cameron intersection. Vershel and Manny, the assistant director of transportation, said the city is coordinating with county projects and developers where right-of-way acquisition and design tie-ins are required; they noted the county has a bonded project in that corridor slated for buildout around 2027.

The presentation closed with council members thanking staff for progress on the CIP and infrastructure work. The city will address any formal contract-change approvals and schedule updates as those items come forward on future agendas or via administrative processes.