Upper Brushy Creek WCID Breaks Ground on New Dam

This dam will reduce flood risk in the largest damage center in Williamson County

The $34 million construction project will be the largest undertaking since the original dams were built in the late 1950s and 1960s. The City of Round Rock partnered with the District to hire AECOM Technical Services to  design the project; the City is also providing in kind services during and post construction. The majority of project funding comes from District proceeds of the 2020 voter approved bond election.

“There are three parts to good local government; first, this project reduces flooding in southern Williamson County, second, the voters approved this project, and by doing so, allowed our Board to cut our tax rate.  Those three parts are a win-win-win for our community.”  said Jeremiah D. Williams, President of the Upper Brushy Creek Water Control and Improvement District.

The new dam is designed to substantially reduce flooding in the largest damage center in Williamson County including improving emergency access and response times in the area. Flood risks will be reduced for over 1,000 residents along approximately 5 miles of Lake Creek as it winds from the dam through the Greater Round Rock West neighborhood, past IH 35 and onto Brushy Creek. The new dam is the largest of three identified projects to mitigate flooding in the Lake Creek watershed. Learn more....

The District’s Contractor, Sundt Construction, Inc. is tasked with building the nearly a mile long earthen dam embankment with a maximum height of 40 feet. and two discharge features. The principal spillway, located on Lake Creek, will include a intake structure, a 60-inch conduit, and an impact basin at the outfall. The auxiliary spillway will be a concrete labyrinth weir discharging to a chute and stilling basin. HDR, Inc. is providing construction phase inspection services on behalf of the District. Project completion is expected in early 2026.

About the Upper Brushy Creek WCID

The Upper Brushy Creek Water Control and Improvement District (WCID) was created in 1956 to help reduce flooding and control erosion. The original twenty-three dams were constructed in the late 50’s and early 60’s to protect a mostly rural landscape. Since then, the District has rapidly developed from Leander to Hutto to be home to over 400,000 people with complimentary commercial development. The increase in overland flows and the number of lives and property at-risk make the regional flood protection the dams provide more important than ever.