AUSTIN, Texas — In Austin, two massive elevated water reservoirs will be going in to store more water for the city.
One will be installed near Southwest Parkway and Amarra Trail, and the other will be located near South Interstate 35 and State Highway 45.
"These two new tanks will be elevated storage tanks. One will hold 2 million gallons, and the other will hold 3 million gallons," Austin Water Director Shay Ralls Roalson said.
Roalson said it is about a $60 million project.
"We have a need to have more storage in those areas, in order to provide more resilient service to those areas that are farthest from our treatment plants," she said.
Roalson said the water for these tanks comes from the Colorado River, goes into water treatment plants and then it is sent out into the distribution system. Roalson said the system does have enough water, but it is good to have water stored, especially during an extreme weather event.
"Such as this event in February, with Winter Storm Mara, when we have power outages across our system impacting pump stations and lift stations," she said. "By having more storage in the distribution system, that gives us more time to restore power and address emergency situations."
The tanks will in service by 2030.
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