As new residents continue to migrate into Round Rock, city planners are facing new infrastructure demands on the city's streets, utilities and water supply.

Between 1990 and 2010, Round Rock's population more than tripled, and in 2012 the city's population exceeded 100,000, according to U.S. census data. According to city projections, Round Rock's population is expected to continue growing by 2 percent to 3.1 percent through 2030, when it is anticipated to exceed 158,000.

"We are not blind to what is coming," said Round Rock Transportation Department director Gary Hudder. "Over the next 25 years, the growth will shift from Austin to the north Williamson County area."

The challenge facing Hudder and the city's Transportation Department is not only improving the existing mobility issues, but also preparing a plan for what the city's streets will look like in the decades to come.

"We are doing a really good job of [playing] offense from a planning perspective," Hudder said. "The challenge is going to be funding for all of us. We can anticipate what's coming and plan for that, but in order to build it, you have to fund it in front of the growth that will pay for it.

"The reality is, the cost of dealing with the growth that is anticipated from an infrastructure standpoint is staggering."

Facing the future

In November, Round Rock Mayor Alan McGraw hosted a summit focusing on the future growth of Williamson County and Round Rock. Attendees were presented with projections that showed the county's population could more than double by 2030 and potentially exceed Travis County by 2045.

Round Rock and other cities in the county can expect to feel the same growing pains that other large-city suburban communities throughout the nation have dealt with, City of Austin Demographer Ryan Robinson said. Robinson said Austin is carefully tracking Williamson County growth because 44,000 of its residents reside within the county.

"Williamson County now joins this big group of growing counties, like Fairfax [Va.], Orange County [Calif.], and DuPage [Ill.]," Robinson said. "[Williamson County cities] are beginning to struggle with that question: How much do we want to grow? In the past it has been full-throttle, let's grow as fast as we can, but at some point they are going to question that."

McGraw said the majority of residents who attended the growth summit were lukewarm regarding the idea of continued expansion and the potential problems it brings.

"Not everyone wanted to see the kind of growth projected," McGraw said. "There is not agreement [growth] is a good thing. The consensus was if we are going to grow, let's have good, quality growth.

"The common theme was there needs to be a better balance between residential and commercial growth."

Preparing now

The most common issue facing fast-growth cities—and the most likely challenges for Round Rock—are roads and water, said David Fowler, senior planner for Capitol Area Council of Governments. CAPCOG is a Central Texas regional growth and planning association composed of more than 90 regional government entities.

"[Round Rock planning officials] need to make sure that everything is accommodated for," Fowler said.

Round Rock took a major step in planning for its future water needs in 2012 when the Brushy Creek Regional Utility Authority water supply project went active. A joint city effort among Round Rock, Cedar Park and Leander, the BCRUA will be able to supply Round Rock with up to 40.8 million gallons of water per day, according to the BCRUA.

"Round Rock has pretty much accommodated the water needed for all of its planned growth, so that is not a problem," Fowler said.

With new water rights secured, the more pressing concerns for the city have become transportation and housing, McGraw said. The eventual build-out population of the city—projected to be 250,000–300,000—will depend largely on what type of homes the city allows developers to build, he said.

The discrepancy [in population projections] is based on how dense will it be," McGraw said. "Will it be vertical, or single-family homes, and how big are the lots?"

Hudder said Round Rock is working to solve current road issues while also keeping an eye on the future.

"We are trying to fund projects that are long overdue while at the same time trying to get on offense for some of the stuff that is going to be needed as the community grows," Hudder said. "We are trying to work with the county to build roads to connect with surrounding communities."

The city is also keeping an eye out for future public transportation needs, Hudder said. The land along the former Missouri-Kansas Railroad line that runs north/south through the city roughly parallel to A.W. Grimes Boulevard has been identified for potential construction of a future mass-transit arterial, he said.

"The challenge is ... there isn't any political motivation to do public transit because it is extremely expensive."