Houston Infrastructure: City leaders to vote on whether to repair nearly 2 dozen water engines

Hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars are at stake Tuesday as city leaders struggle to vote on repairing nearly two dozen water pumps.

On Monday night, the Houston Department of Public Works confirmed to ABC13 that 19 underground motors were incorrectly configured and lacked what they call protective relays that prevent electrical instabilities from damaging the motor.

Municipal records show that underground engines requiring repairs are essential to our communities’ water supply and maintaining pressure in the water system.

Public works officials say the city’s groundwater system includes 55 groundwater plants, 131 wells and more than 300 large engines.

ABC13 asked how it was discovered that the engines had faulty configurations.

Sheri Smith is an urban planning expert at Texas Southern University who says infrastructure is the backbone of the city.

When asked how she thinks Houston’s spine is doing, she told ABC13, “It’s a little shaky, but in all honesty, it’s a little shaky in a lot of cities. We’re not alone in that.”

City records show repairs to the 19 engines are not expected to cost more than $750,000.

On Tuesday, city leaders will also decide in council whether to approve a nearly $300,000 reimbursement from FEMA for money spent weeks ago to repair traffic signals damaged in May’s Derecho windstorm.

“Houston’s hidden infrastructure is like most other places. We typically don’t pay attention to it until it becomes a problem, which is not fair, but I think we’re learning more about it,” Smith said.

City records confirm that if emergency funding is approved, repairs to all 19 water pumps should be completed by the end of October.

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