The city of Liberty Hill is moving forward with the construction of its Advanced Water Purification Facility, or AWPF, pilot facility after the City Council approved a construction contract at its Dec. 10 meeting.

The pilot facility will conduct testing of water purification methods that will eventually be used at the full AWPF facility.

The details: The council awarded the contract to Archer Western Construction LLC for $14.99 million.

The council also approved a $1.94 million contract that will continue the city’s professional services agreement with Garver LLC. The city said in a news release that Garver will continue to provide “construction administration, pilot operations, water-quality sampling, regulatory coordination, and public outreach activities.”

The timeline: Construction of the pilot facility is set to be completed in October. The next step is testing different water purification methods, which Garver says will take about eight months.

The design of the full AWPF is set to be completed in fall 2028, and the final facility is scheduled to be completed in spring 2031.

In two separate votes during a special meeting Dec. 17, the Leander ISD board of trustees voted against closing Steiner Ranch Elementary in the 2026-27 school year but will move forward with consolidating Faubion Elementary with Westside Elementary. 

The board first unanimously voted to direct administration to bring back a comprehensive districtwide alignment plan for the Vandegrift High School feeder pattern, which includes Steiner Ranch and other campuses located in the southern part of the district facing declining enrollment. The board later voted 5-2 to consolidate Faubion, with trustees Paul Gauthier and Trish Bode casting the dissenting votes.

What you need to know: The alignment plan will consider expanding grade span models that integrate elementary and middle grades, and provide consolidation scenarios for the Vandegrift feeder pattern in 2027-28. Following the vote to consolidate Faubion, administration could consider repurposing the campus for New Hope High School or other uses. 

Next steps: District staff will prepare a rezoning and restaffing plan for Faubion, and develop a task force to support the transition plan. 

In 2026, the Texas Children’s Ambassadors Program will be allocating more funds to the Kangaroo Crew, the hospital system’s transport program. One way the hospital will be investing more in the program is by introducing its own helicopter at Texas Children’s North Austin Hospital which is set to arrive in early 2026.

How we got here: Assistant Clinical Director Kami Stone said the team spent months identifying a location to store the helicopter which would give them the quickest access to their patients at the North Austin hospital. The Kangaroo Crew spent an additional six months training and securing supplies to make sure they would be on track for the January launch date.

How it works: Stone said the helicopter will be used in situations where a patient is too sick to wait for the responders to arrive via ambulance and cases of “surgical and medical emergencies” in which a patient is stable but there is a high risk of something going bad.

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Catch up on recent coverage of development activity in Round Rock, including consideration for a future data center, water infrastructure and an expansion to the Play for All Abilities Park.

$25M expansion set for emergency training hub: In December, Round Rock will break ground on a $25 million expansion to its Public Safety Training Center for firefighters and police officers, seven years after it originally opened.
Funded by a 2023 voter-approved bond package, the project will increase the Round Rock Public Safety Training Center’s classroom space, outdoor skills training space and include a driving track. These enhancements will keep officers and firefighters in town for training and reduce local competition for training space, avoiding the expense of travel and lodging.

Grant, bonds to fund expansion to Play for All Abilities Park in Round Rock: Round Rock children will soon be able to learn about recycling from a grant and bond-funded expansion to the city's Play for All Abilities Park. The grant funding the expansion comes from Republic Services Recycling.