Hutto implements plan to ensure city manages water demands

“We’ve never had this before,” Truman said. “It’s really helpful. As the city grows we can model it and get real-time information on things like water pressure.”

The plan was created through a study by DCS Engineering, which analyzed the city’s water system. Truman said the main highlights of the plan focus on infrastructure issues such as pipe sizes and where to add future pipelines.

Truman said the plan is based on the city’s future land-use model and accounts for piping in areas where officials expect to see development.

Truman said officials are already incorporating the water master plan into current utility work to ensure the work meets future growth demands and standards.

“We’ll review the plan every five years,” she said. “It’s cycled through along with the wastewater, drainage and transportation plans. We’ll review it to make sure it keeps up with population growth.”

Truman said another important part of the DCS Engineering study and water master plan includes guidelines for flushing water. She said when the city needs to flush sitting water from the lines, officials used to pick pipes at random to flush. City staffers now have a plan for a systematic approach to flush water from the pipes.

“We can start looking at [water usage] as a whole, instead of each individual instance.”

– Scot Stromsness, Hutto Public Works director

Stromsness said the plan does not affect the city’s water sources, and the city will continue to source its water from Heart of Texas Water Suppliers, Manville Water Supply Corp. and the city of Taylor.

With one of the highest water rate fees in the area, Stromsness said Hutto’s water rates are higher because of the city’s water contracts being newer than in surrounding areas. He said when other cities begin renewing decades-old contracts, he expects to see rates increase throughout the area.

Stromsness said water rates will not likely lower, but he hopes to prevent them from increasing with the plan in place. He said a commercial development or other large water user could eventually come into the city and help absorb some of the costs of supplying water to the area.

“Right now our goal is to manage our water as economically as possible,” he said.

Stromsness said Hutto residents use less water per capita than surrounding areas, which he believes is due in part to the water rates.

“The rates keep the consumption low,” he said. “We’re planning ahead, and if other areas go into water restrictions, we’ll still be in a good position with plenty of water.”

Stromsness said the plan showed that the city has plenty of elevated water storage and should be able to supply water to new areas and residents.

“[The water master plan] helps us have the right tools as we grow and respond to demands,” he said.