Austin - Austin Water invites its customers to attend one of several Open House over the next several weeks to learn about their water and wastewater system, planned investments, and how these investments may impact rates in the coming year. As Austin Water seeks to improve system resiliency, keep pace with a growing population, and optimize the system, water and wastewater rate increases have been forecasted beginning in 2025. A Cost-of-Service Rate Study is being conducted now, with a goal of balancing affordability for customers, while improving and maintaining critical utility infrastructure for extreme weather and a growing population. Open House attendees will have a chance to ask staff questions and share their feedback. The schedule of Open House, their locations and times are:


Thursday, May 23:        Twin Oaks Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        1800 South Fifth Street
                                        4:00 – 7:00PM

Wednesday, May 29:   NEW LOCATION - Old Quarry Branch - Austin Public Library
                                       7051 Village Center Drive, Room 1
                                        4:00 – 7:00PM

Thursday, May 30:        Hampton Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        5125 Convict Hill Road
                                        4:00 – 7:00PM

Saturday, June 1:          Little Walnut Creek Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        835 W. Rundberg Lane
                                        10:00AM – 1:00PM

Tuesday, June 4:            Pleasant Hill Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        211 E. William Cannon Drive
                                        4:00 – 7:00PM

Wednesday, June 5:      Spicewood Springs Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        8637 Spicewood Springs Road
                                        4:00 – 7:00PM

Saturday, June 8:          Conley-Guerrero Senior Activity Center
                                        808 Nile Street
                                        8:30 – 11:30AM

Tuesday, June 11:         North Village Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        2505 Steck Avenue
                                        4:00 – 7:00PM

Thursday, June 13:       VIRTUAL MEETING ON ZOOM
                                        6:00 – 7:00PM

Saturday, June 15:        Menchaca Road Branch - Austin Public Library
                                        5500 Menchaca Road
                                        10:00AM – 1:00PM

Saturday, June 22:        Montopolis Recreation & Community Center
                                        1200 Montopolis
                                        10:00AM – 1:00PM

In-Person Open House: No formal presentation will be made. Customers can drop in at any time to view materials and speak with Austin Water officials. Representatives from customer service will be on hand to answer billing questions. Comment cards will be provided.

Virtual Open House: Austin Water officials will deliver a webinar explaining the need for the Rate Study, preliminary findings and potential rate impacts. Attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback through online tools. Click here for information about the meeting and a Zoom link to attend.

Focus Groups: Two focus groups are also being scheduled for more in-depth conversations. Austin Water is seeking 30 customers to attend (up to 15 at each session) on Thursday, May 30 in the evening or Friday, May 31 in the morning. Participants will receive a gift card from AW’s residential rate advocate, Raftelis, for their time. Applications available here: Public Input Opportunities.

Feedback will be compiled from all of these sessions and considered by Austin Water as it makes key decisions about rate changes in the future.

If you require language interpretation assistance to attend any of these sessions, contact Austin Water at AWPublicInformation@austintexas.gov. A summary of all feedback will be made available at Austin Water’s website and to customers upon request.

In addition to these opportunities, Austin Water will solicit input at SpeakUp Austin. It has also convened a Public Involvement Committee (PIC) that is providing ongoing input to the Rate Study team. The PIC meetings are open to the public, and recordings of each meeting as well as backup materials are posted at the SpeakUp Austin web page.