Pflugerville approves updated water contract with doubled yearly allowance

A new contract with the Lower Colorado River Authority will allow Pflugerville to keep up with the growing water demand in the coming years.

Pflugerville City Council approved the contract, which increases the city's maximum water supply allowance from 12,000 acre-feet per year to 24,000, at a June 28 meeting.

If water demand projections hold, the increased supply will ensure the city has sufficient water through 2040, Utilities Director Brandon Pritchett said.

The city will pay a reservation fee for the additional water supply equal to half of the LCRA's firm water rate. At the current rate of $115 per acre-foot, reserving the additional 12,000 acre-feet will cost the city $930,000.

For water the city uses, it will pay the full rate instead of the reservation fee.

The city also has several water-related infrastructure projects in the works, including a water treatment plant expansion and a secondary raw water line.

Pritchett said those infrastructure projects will be necessary for the city to make use of its additional water supply.

"The raw water supply and the water treatment plant expansion are all intertwined in one form or another," Pritchett said. "The water plant expansion and the pipeline don't make sense if we don't have the raw water supply."