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Interim director of Austin Water appointed

Robert Goode will step into the role in April after Director Greg Meszaros officially steps down.

AUSTIN, Texas — Austin City Manager Spencer Cronk has appointed an interim director for Austin Water six weeks after Greg Meszaros announced his resignation from the position.

Robert Goode has been appointed as the interim director and will begin the role on April 11, according to a release from the City of Austin.

Goode is a veteran executive with more than 37 years of city, county and private sector experience. He most recently served as vice president and senior program manager for Lockwood, Andrews and Newman.

Goode previously directed transportation and infrastructure planning departments such as the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority (CTRMA), City of Austin, City of Fort Worth, Travis County and City of Olympia, Washington.

RELATED: Austin Water director resigns, 3 employees placed on leave following days-long boil water notice

During his 10-year career with the City of Austin, Goode served as assistant city manager over the infrastructure services group providing direct executive leadership and oversight over multiple departments including Austin Water Utility, Austin Resource Recovery, the Corridor Program Office and the Public Works and Transportation Departments.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Idaho.

Meszaros' last day in office will be April 8, per the City. He will remain available to assist in the transition process. Meszaros spent nearly 40 years in the profession, 15 of which were serving and leading the City’s water utility.

   

Meszaros resigned in February after a days-long boil water notice that was issued on Feb. 5 and lifted Feb. 8. 

Austin Water later shared that the cause of the notice was an internal operation issue that led to high turbidity in the water, meaning the water was cloudy. The department explained that the issue "increased the addition of processed solids, mostly comprised of lime, during the treatment process. This is what resulted in turbidity that exceeded regulatory requirements."

The department also said water disinfection levels remained "strong" and within regulatory levels at the time. 

Austin Water also placed three employees on administrative leave as an investigation continues into how the incident occurred and who was responsible.

The Austin City Council approved an external audit of the utility in response to the citywide boil notice and called on the city manager to provide options to address adverse water bill impacts experienced by Austin Water customers. 

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