Urban creek projects often begin with a specific need: reduce flooding, stabilize an eroding channel or protect nearby infrastructure. But a creek corridor rarely serves only one purpose. It may also contain roads, utilities, habitat, trails, parks and connections between neighborhoods.

For major water utilities, taking a critical transmission main out of service can create one of the highest-risk periods in the life of an asset. The shutdown itself may last only days, but maintaining system reliability during that window can require years of operational planning, contingency development, and coordination.

Public works agencies are managing increasingly complex portfolios of facilities and infrastructure while making capital decisions that can affect budgets, operations, and service delivery for decades. As those portfolios grow and the amount of available asset information expands, the challenge is no longer simply documenting needs. It is using that information in a way that helps agencies make better long-term investment decisions.

The city of Houston manages more than $1.2 billion worth of capital improvement projects for the region’s water system. The ultimate goal: converting the area from groundwater to surface water usage.

As school districts across the country face increasing enrollment, aging infrastructure and rising construction costs, professional bond program management is proving to be a key strategy for maximizing resources and maintaining public trust. Tomball Independent School District in Texas stands out as a leading example of how expert oversight can turn ambitious bond programs into successful, cost-effective projects that benefit students and taxpayers alike.

Laredo, Texas, is on the cusp of a major transformation. Fueled by population increases, expanding residential neighborhoods and major civic investments, the city’s transportation infrastructure is under pressure to keep pace. To address immediate safety concerns and long-term travel demand, Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam, Inc. (LAN) designed a new overpass as part of the State Loop 20 (SL 20) Cuatro Vientos expansion project through the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). 

As one of the most flood-prone cities in the United States, Houston knows the stakes of inadequate stormwater infrastructure. In response to increasing climate volatility, aging drainage systems, and rapid urban growth, the City of Houston commissioned a city-wide Stormwater Master Plan.

Rising water needs in Houston, Texas, demanded a new transmission line be built for water supply. The large project scale requires partners to share responsibility for a common goal.

The Northeast Transmission Line (NETL) is now carrying water produced by Houston Public Works’s expanded Northeast Water Purification Plant to City and regional customers.

In 2020, completing the MoPac Intersections at Slaughter Lane and La Crosse Avenue in Southwest Austin marked a milestone for the state’s transportation infrastructure.

Hundreds of miles of large diameter water transmission lines are buried underground in the greater Houston area. Several of these critical lines, and even fewer that have suffered previous catastrophic failures disrupting services to key areas of the city, remain in service today.