Public Works

The Facilities Maintenance Division personnel identify maintenance problems, perform emergency repairs, preventive maintenance, safety and security checks, electrical, heating and ventilation systems for the following City facilities:

• City Hall Complex
• Community Centers
• Fire Stations (5)
• Municipal Court
• Parks Maintenance
• Police Headquarters
• Public Works
• Recreation Center

The Fleet Services Division maintains the City's rolling stock, tools and equipment for safe and dependable use by the department's customers in an environment that promotes safety through the use of properly trained, experienced and certified personnel and necessary equipment.

Responsibilities:

• Maintain motorized vehicles, equipment, and tools for City departments and divisions
• Provide major and minor repairs of vehicles and motorized equipment as needed
• Perform preventive and routine maintenance of vehicles and motorized equipment
• Keep accurate maintenance and repair records on City vehicles and motorized equipment
• Provide mobile or field repair services

The Meter Services Division provides data to the Utility Billing Office, so water and sewer bills are generated in a timely manner. The Meter Services Department also rechecks meter readings, investigates water leaks, disconnects water service on delinquent accounts, and performs job duties in a safe and efficient manner.

Have questions about your watering schedule? Visit the Water Thrifty Cedar Park website.

Responsibilities:

• Record readings on monthly accounts using electronic handheld meter reading device
• Reading bulk meters monthly
• Install meters for new accounts
• Disconnect service for non-payment, water leaks, and meter replacements
• Maintain equipment for rebuilding and testing all sized meters
• Implement Meter Replacement Program
• Test and calibrate all new water meters
• Perform cross-checks and rereads to ensure proper billing

Contact the Utility Billing Office regarding questions or concerns related to water bills via email or by phone at 512-401-5300. The Utility Billing Department is located at 450 Cypress Creek Road, Building 3.

The Pump and Motor Division maintains and operates the City's pump and motor systems in a manner that provides a safe working environment for field personnel and continuous service to the customers of the City by maximizing the investment in the system through the use of properly trained, experienced and certified employees and necessary equipment.

Responsibilities:

• Provide 24-hour on-call emergency repair service
• Rebuild pumps and motors
• Troubleshoot all electric problems as needed
• Maintain pumps, motors, and electric at the Water Treatment Plant, Wastewater Treatment Plant, lift stations, and booster stations

The Stormwater Division provides for certain maintenance of the City's Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (or MS4). The MS4 is a system made up of roads, curbs, ditches, man-made channels and/or storm drain inlets and pipes which is owned and operated by the City and designed for collecting and conveying storm water runoff throughout the city.

Along with other departments and agencies, the Stormwater maintenance crews help our public areas drain after rainfall events.

Responsibilities:

• Clean certain public drainage areas
• Maintain stormwater system
• Routine inspections

The Streets Division maintains the transportation and drainage infrastructure used by the customers of the City in a manner that promotes safety in the use and maintenance of the facilities and maximizes the City's investment with properly trained, experienced, certified and equipped personnel.

Responsibilities:

• Patch potholes and utility cuts
• Repair base failures and damage caused by water and wastewater line breaks
• Reconstruct streets to upgrade driving surface and drainage
• Perform crack sealing of streets to prevent water damage
• Inspect and perform necessary repairs to City sidewalks
• Tree trimming
• Install and maintain street signs and pavement markings
• Continue with ongoing street sweeping schedule

The department is responsible for design, installation, operation, and maintenance of traffic control devices such as traffic signals, school flashers, and streetlights to ensure safety and efficiency.

The department currently maintains more than 50 traffic signals in the city limits. Traffic signals along Parmer Lane (Farm to Market Road (FM) 734), Whitestone Boulevard (Ranch to Market Road (RM) 1431), and Bell Boulevard (U.S. Highway 183) are owned by the Texas Department of Transportation, and are operated by Cedar Park through an agreement between both agencies (see Signal Map (PDF)).

In addition to traffic signals, the department maintains about 240 streetlights that are located along certain sections of Lakeline Boulevard and Cypress Creek Road. There are also more than 2000 streetlights throughout the City that are jointly maintained by the City and Pedernales Electric Cooperative (PEC) (see Streetlight Map (PDF)). Streetlights are designed and installed in a manner to illuminate public streets.

Maintaining streetlights also requires the help of all Cedar Park residents, employees and commuters who are encouraged to notify outages to the city by calling 512-401-5550.

The Wastewater Collection Division operates the City's wastewater collection system in a manner that provides a safe working environment for field personnel and continuous service to the customers of the City by maximizing the investment in the system through the use of properly trained, experienced and certified employees and necessary equipment.

Responsibilities:

• Install new service taps
• Inspection and maintenance of wastewater mains, service lines and manholes
• Locate wastewater lines upon requests from Texas811 service
• Provide 24-hour on-call emergency repair service

The Water Distribution Division operates the City's water distribution system in a manner that provides a safe working environment for field personnel and continuous service to the customers of the City by maximizing investments in the system through the use of properly trained, experienced and certified employees and necessary equipment.

Have questions about your watering schedule? Visit the Water Thrifty Cedar Park website.

Responsibilities:

• Install new service taps
• Inspection and maintenance of water mains and service lines
• Monitor water quality
• Check for leaks in mains and services
• Locate water lines upon requests from Texas811 service
• Provide 24-hour on-call emergency repair service

The Water Reclamation Division provides a continuous and high quality treatment of wastewater for our customers that meets or exceeds all State and Federal requirements through the use of employees focused on safety, quality operations, and proper maintenance of facility equipment, in an environment that promotes safety, training, professional certification and advancement of our employees.

What Is Water Reclamation?

Water reclamation is the treating of domestic wastewater to such a degree that it can be reclaimed and reused. The reason is that 99.9% of domestic wastewater is valuable, useable product. In Cedar Park our drinking water comes from Lake Travis and it is not free. The City buys every gallon we pump out of the lake from the Lower Colorado River Authority, plus there is a cost for treating that water so it meets all the State and Federal requirements for drinkable or "potable" water. Every gallon of wastewater that can be treated and reclaimed represents money saved. Even the water we reclaim can be used to water the lawns and trees in the parks, wash down basins at the wastewater plant, even wash down vehicles and equipment. The standard for "reuse" water is actually just below that of "potable" water. This saves thousands of gallons of "potable" water each year, and since all the wastewater that's treated at the Cedar Park Water Reclamation Facility is to a reuse standard, all the wastewater the facility releases into the receiving stream is of very high quality. This facility and its staff are very proud and committed to the role we play both in our community and in our environment. We are making a difference one gallon at a time.

Responsibilities:

• Provides 24-hour per day, 7-day per week operations at treatment facility
• Checks all facility equipment at least once per shift
• Adjusts various facility equipment several times per shift to maintain treatment process
• Collects samples for laboratory testing
• Performs sludge wasting and dewatering four times per week using belt filter press
• Washes basins daily and scrubs basins weekly
• Provides various reports to City Hall staff and outside agencies
• Schedules major maintenance of facility equipment
• Reviews operational surveys and worksheets and communicates plant status and operational needs at shift changes
• Reviews daily results of contract laboratory
• Checks chemicals, lab, office and infection control supplies and orders as needed
• Maintains facility grounds

Did You Know?

The cost of operating a Waste Water Treatment Facility is reflected in your monthly bill. To help keep costs down please don't dispose of harmful chemicals down your drain such as:

• Paint cleaning
• Fluids
• Solvents
• Pesticides
• Fertilizers
• Gasoline (or any flammable materials)
• Oils and antifreeze

Not only are these harmful but it is illegal to dispose of these materials down your drain. Once these harmful chemicals enter the treatment facility, they can kill the bacteria needed to clean the wastewater. When this happens, it can make it very difficult to meet all the standards required by State and Federal regulations and permits.

Please don't use your sewer line to drain the water from your yard during rainy periods! Large amounts of rainwater in the sewer system cause costly problems at the treatment plant. Any pesticides, fertilizers, or other chemicals placed on your yard get drained into the sewer system as well. These chemicals kill the bacteria used to treat the wastewater.

For More Information

Contact the Utility Billing Office regarding questions or concerns related to water bills via email or by phone at 512-401-5300. The Utility Billing Department is located at 450 Cypress Creek Road, Building 3.

The City of Cedar Park Water Treatment Plant is located on Lake Travis and is the source of the City's drinking water supply. Originally built in 1973, the water treatment plant started with a capacity of 2 million gallons per day (MGD). Since then the plant has undergone several expansions, the most recent of which was completed in 2003, bringing the capacity to 23 MGD. In 2006, the treatment units were re-rated, and approved by Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), for a total capacity of 26 MGD.

For information on water quality, download the Most Recent Water Quality Report (PDF).

Treatment Process

All of the operations at the City's treatment facility are regulated by the TCEQ and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This facility meets or exceeds all of the requirements of these agencies. The first step in the treatment process is to pump raw water from the lake into the main treatment process; this is where the organic and inorganic material contained in the lake water is removed. This is accomplished through a combination of chemical additions followed by clarifiers to remove the larger particles and mixed media sand filters to remove the smaller particles.

There are two types of treatment processes at Cedar Park's plant; one is a conventional process installed in the 1986 expansion and the other is a high rate modular type treatment process designed to use on the exceptionally clean water coming out of Lake Travis. These modular units also allow quick and cost effective expansions to react to the high growth rates we are experiencing in Cedar Park. The final step in the treatment process is disinfection. The plant feeds free chlorine through the treatment units and is then converted to chloramine before being pumped into the distribution system. The treated water is pumped to large storage tanks at various locations around the service area. The water is distributed from these storage tanks to all our customers.

The plant is staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year by professional licensed operators. Their licenses are issued by TCEQ. Nights, weekends and even holidays, the staff is on duty making sure the water is flowing to you. Tests are performed on both the raw water coming into the plant as well as the treated water leaving the plant every day. This testing helps ensure the quality and safety of our drinking water supply. The staff also utilizes a computer based monitoring system called a SCADA (system control and data acquisition) to monitor not only the process taking place within the plant, but also the storage and distribution system.

The Resource Efficiency Division oversees three main areas of resource efficiency: Water, Air and Energy. The City of Cedar Park is proactive in addressing the environmental needs of our community. The City is striving to stay up to date with many programs, such as Cedar Park Conserves, that offer our citizens assistance in being environmentally friendly and using our precious natural resources wisely.

Contact

Nanette McCartan
Utility Programs Manager
Office: 512-401-5314
Water Hotline: 512-401-5308
Email Nanette McCartan

Water Thrifty

To see your two designated days-per-week outdoor watering schedule, tips for water waste prevention, educational guides, LCRA rebate information and to report water waste violations, please visit Cedar Park's Water Thrifty website.

Digital Water Meter Portal

See hourly water use, detect water waste and set customized alerts by registering your account with our Digital Water Meter Portal. Learn more on our AMI Digital Water Meters Information page.

Energy Efficiency in Our Facilities

In 2009, the City of Cedar Park was awarded $519,700, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, to develop and implement projects to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy use and fossil fuel emissions in our community. These funds were used to make much-needed improvements to our City facilities. Projects include installation of energy-saving lighting at the Library, introduction of motion controlled lighting at City facilities, replacement of outdated "energy-hog" HVAC units with more efficient systems, application of window tinting to reduce heating and cooling costs, and replacement of the old City Hall roof with Energy Star roofing material.

Additionally, most of the City facilities include energy efficient techniques and technology, for example Energy Star appliances, motion controlled lighting, window tinting, use of local materials when available, and weather sensitive irrigation systems. These technologies are now standard for any new facilities the City builds. Not only are these techniques beneficial for our environment, but analysis indicates that the up-front costs are justified by long-term energy and resource savings.

The City encourages residents and business owners to also consider the savings of "green" building, when planning new construction.

Pedernales Electric Cooperative, Inc.

Cedar Park residents mostly purchase their electricity from Pedernales Electric Cooperative, Inc. (PEC). PEC offers free energy audits to its customers along with educational information to help you become more energy efficient. Please visit the PEC website for more information on how PEC can assist you.

Comprehensive Land Use Plan

The City's Comprehensive Land Use Plan provides the framework for how and where the city will grow. By strategically planning for the future of Cedar Park, we can ensure that the city's existing land is maximized for its full potential.

Parks & Recreation Master Plan & Trails Master Plan

The Parks and Recreation Department is a key player in how Cedar Park grows and develops. These documents guide both City leadership and staff plans for future parks and trails.

Tree Replacement Fund

As part of the Development Code, developers are required to mitigate for the removal of protected trees when building on a property. If a developer removes protected trees they must plant replacement trees or contribute financially to the Tree Replacement Fund, which is used by the Parks department for planting new trees on public property.

Alternative Fuels & Petroleum Reduction

The City Council has made a commitment to the integration of alternative fuel into the City's fleet because of the benefits including potential reduced fuel and maintenance costs, environmental benefits, and energy independence. The Texas Railroad Commission awarded the City of Cedar Park a grant to help cover the incremental cost of ten propane-fueled vehicles and a propane fueling station. The first propane fleet vehicles hit the streets in 2011.

Additionally, the City is a member of the U.S. Department of Energy's Clean Cities Coalition program. The Clean Cities program is a network of approximately 90 coalitions which develop public and private partnerships to promote alternative fuels and petroleum reduction.

Anti-Idling Technology

Using grant funds, the City purchased and installed radios which improve the timing of intersections in order to decrease time spent idling at stop lights. The result is a reduction of fuel consumption and exhaust emission.

Promoting Walkability

The City has an ongoing program dedicated to closing the gaps between existing sidewalks in order to promote walkability around the community. The sidewalks along U.S. 183/ Bell Boulevard are examples of this initiative.