Pflugerville Water Pipeline and Treatment Plant: What’s Next for Property Owners?

Map courtesy of Garver Engineering via Austin American-Statesman

The Pflugerville City Council unanimously approved the issuance of more than $80 million in bonds to secure final funding for two of the City’s largest water projects in years: a secondary raw water pipeline from the Colorado River ($52.9 million) and upgrades and expansions to the City’s water treatment plant ($27.2 million). The 15-mile, 42-inch diameter raw water pipeline aims to provide a long-term water supply to the growing Pflugerville population until 2038.

In order to proceed, the City must secure the land and necessary easements. That means dealing directly with private property owners to construct the pipeline and build the infrastructure within the proposed project area. The City recently authorized eminent domain procedures for at least two other infrastructure projects after they couldn’t agree on terms with the landowners (see Community Impact’s Pflugerville pursues eminent domain for infrastructure upgrades). In these instances, eminent domain and private property takings are not an uncommon approach for the City.

Here’s what potentially affected property owners should expect to occur next:

1. Right-of-Entry, Survey and Appraisals: The City requests right-of-entry to gain access to private property, then surveys and appraises the land to determine fair market value.  The landowner can accept this initial offer before the City proceeds with eminent domain.
2. Condemnation Proceedings: If the offer fails or the City and landowner can’t come to an agreement, the Council can authorize condemnation proceedings — a process in which government entities acquire private land for public use by providing them fair compensation for their land. A Special Commissioners Court will convene for a hearing to hear evidence on compensation from both parties and issue an award amount.
3. Court: If either party is dissatisfied with the award amount, they have the right to object to the award and settle a final amount in court.

If you believe your property may be impacted by the Pflugerville water pipeline project, an experienced attorney can help you understand your impacts and build a case. Please contact a lawyer Barron, Adler, Clough & Oddo, PLLC today.

Resources:

• Community Impact: Pflugerville approves $80M in bonds for water pipeline, treatment plant upgrades
• Austin American-Statesman: Pflugerville City Council approves bonds to complete key water projects
• Austin American-Statesman: Pflugerville considers future water options, including $86 million pipeline project