City of Austin and LCRA Announce Planned Lake Austin Drawdown this Fall

At the request of the City of Austin, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) will draw down Lake Austin between Mansfield Dam and Tom Miller Dam from Oct. 12 through Nov. 30, 2026, to allow shoreline property owners and City departments to perform needed maintenance. The City of Austin is seeking this drawdown in response to stakeholder requests.

The lake will be lowered by about 10 feet to provide property owners improved access to docks, bulkheads and boat slips and allow the Austin Fire and Austin Parks & Recreation departments to complete planned maintenance. The lake will be slowly drawn down by no more than about a foot a day beginning Oct. 12.  Depending on conditions at the time of the drawdown, it could take about three weeks for the lake to reach its lowered target range of 481.8 to 482.8 feet above mean sea level. 

Public boat ramps along Lake Austin will be closed and swimming will be prohibited at Emma Long Metropolitan Park throughout the drawdown.

Property owners may take advantage of exposed lakebed areas to repair shoreline structures, dredge boat slips, remove debris and manage nuisance vegetation. Some activities may require City or Texas Parks and Wildlife Department permits.  The City of Austin requires a permit for construction of a new boat dock, repairs to existing boat docks and bulkheads, and removal of sediment in the lakebed. Austin Development Services is developing a dedicated Site Plan Exemption permit application for minor repairs to boat docks and bulkheads during this drawdown, which will be available in the coming weeks.  It will be posted, along with more information about permitting for boat docks, at AustinTexas.gov/Boat-Docks.

While lake drawdowns have been conducted during winter months in the past, following Winter Storm Uri in 2021, LCRA determined it would no longer conduct lake drawdowns in the winter to help ensure the hydroelectric generators at dams along the Highland Lakes remain available to fully support the Texas power grid during the cold winter months. LCRA now conducts planned drawdowns in the fall. 

The Lake Austin refill is scheduled to begin Nov. 24 at a rate of up to 2 feet per day with water released from Lake Travis. Lake Austin is expected to be back in its normal operating range by Nov. 30. 

For everyone’s safety, property owners, contractors, maintenance crews or anyone working in or near Lake Austin during the drawdown should be aware that events such as flooding or potential power shortages could cause the drawdown to be shortened or canceled. Property owners should not leave equipment unattended in the lakebed and should remove tools from the shoreline when not in use.

During the drawdown, LCRA may release water from Mansfield Dam upstream of Lake Austin from time to time to maintain Lake Austin at its lowered level or pass water through the lake to meet downstream demands. During these times, water levels at the upper end of Lake Austin may be higher than the lowered range measured at Tom Miller Dam. 

The City and LCRA will monitor weather and other conditions closely and will advise the public of any anticipated changes to the drawdown timetable.  

The City will also host a community open house on Wed., Sept. 9, 2026, at the City of Austin’s Permitting and Development Center located at 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive (Meeting Room 1407) from 6 to 8 p.m. Residents can learn about the drawdown process and associated permitting requirements.