Recently elected Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said Wednesday that he plans for the agency to play a more active role as it relates to water. “We’re going to have a water department, and we’re going to be very involved,” Miller said at a luncheon during a Lower Colorado River Authority Planning and […]
Water
Posted inEnvironment, Local Politics, Water
Watershed Department maps it out in new guides
Though Austin’s new single-member district system has been actively in place for almost a month, there are undoubtedly countless details to be worked out. There are also opportunities for education, as the Watershed Protection Department has illustrated with a recent project. The Watershed Protection Council District Profiles project details citywide and district-specific watershed profiles and […]
Posted inHays County, Local Government, Resources, Water
Buda Council makes waves with water contract
Much to the dismay of a standing-room-only crowd at Buda City Hall, City Council members approved a water supply contract Tuesday that would allow up to 1 million gallons per day for city use from the Trinity Aquifer in western Hays County. Electro Purification, the Houston-based water supplier that is looking to extract water from […]
Posted inAustin, Development, Resources, Water
Reporter’s Notebook: City cuts ribbon on WTP4
After 30 years, WTP4 finally begins pumping water … Do you remember what you were doing in September 1984? If you lived in Austin and were of voting age, you may have voted “yes” to allow the city to go into debt to build a new water treatment plant to serve the growing northwest part […]
Posted inAustin, Development, Parks, Water
Decker golf proposal likely going to next Council
Lobbyist Richard Suttle surprised most observers Tuesday by asking City Council to postpone a decision on whether to allow his client, Decker Lake Golf LLC, to create a PGA-style golf complex at Walter E. Long Metropolitan Park. The request came when Mayor Lee Leffingwell called upon Suttle to speak during Council’s work session. City staff […]
Posted inCity Council, Environment, Parks, Resources, Water
Water worries derail Decker Lake golf course vote
Worries about water — and Central Texas’ persistent drought — have derailed, at least temporarily, plans for the Decker Lake golf course. After hearing concerns from Austin Water Utility Director Greg Meszaros, City Council voted 7-0 to postpone consideration of an agreement to turn over 735 acres of parkland for development of a high-end golf […]
Posted inLocal Government, Resources, Water
LCRA seeks more limits on downstream release
With an analysis predicting the possibility of record low storage levels in lakes Buchanan and Travis early next year, the Lower Colorado River Authority board of directors voted 11-2 Wednesday to ask the state for a fourth year to limit the release of water from the Highland Lakes to agricultural interests downstream. The board also […]
Posted inAustin, City Hall, Resources, Water
Water/Wastewater recommends rate changes, again
The Water and Wastewater Commission has recommended that Council amend Austin Water Utility’s residential rates for 2015 in a way that staff says will cut an average user’s rates while raising them for more intensive users. Austin Water Assistant Director David Anders said the amendment would lower the impact of the 2015 rate increases for […]
Posted inResources, Water
San Antonio approves $3.4B for water pipeline
Saying the city needed to act to secure a new, long-term source of water, the San Antonio City Council voted Thursday to approve a $3.4 billion project to build a pipeline to deliver an estimated 16 billion gallons of water each year from the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer in Burleson County. The flow from the 142-mile pipeline […]
Posted inAustin, Bonds & Propositions, City Council, Development, Local Politics, Resources, Water
Reporters Notebook: Rail bonds & fluoridated water
Discovering the flip side of Laura Pressley … Two separate local media outlets started digging deeper into District 4 City Council candidate Laura Pressley’s recent political past Thursday. The Chronicle struck first with a piece from Monitor political editor Jo Clifton that runs down a host of odd beliefs attributed to Pressley, including wide-ranging concerns […]