LCRA gets new general manager
The newly-named 12th general manager of the LCRA, Rudy Garza. Lower Colorado River Authority photo.
The Lower Colorado River Authority will soon have a new general manager, placing a permanent lead in the role that has been vacant since March.
The LCRA announced on June 1 that its Board of Directors had selected Rudy D. Garza, a Texas native with over three decades of experience in utility leadership, as its next general manager. The new GM will officially take over on July 20.
“Rudy is a proven leader who can help LCRA develop new water resources and further build its power portfolio to help Texas address the demand for these critical resources as our state continues to grow,” reads a statement from LCRA Board Chair Stephen F. Cooper.
Garza currently serves as the president and chief executive officer of the country’s largest municipally-owned electric and natural gas utility, CPS Energy, which he joined in 2012. Prior to joining the company, Garza was the assistant city manager of business support services and director of intergovernmental relations for the city of Corpus Christi.
Garza will succeed acting General Manager and Chief Financial Officer Jim Travis, who temporarily took over following the resignation of former GM Phil Wilson on March 12. According to an LCRA press release on the leadership change, Wilson stepped down to “pursue a new opportunity,” after serving a 12-year tenure with the river authority.
What does the LCRA do?
The LCRA regulates the water of the Lower Colorado River Basin, including the Highland Lakes– Lake Buchanan, Inks Lake, Lake LBJ, Lake Marble Falls, Lake Travis, and Lake Austin. The river authority oversees the water supply for more than 1.4 million Texas residents.
The LCRA also generates, supplies, and transmits power, providing energy to more than 30 retail utilities including cities and electric cooperatives throughout the state, and operating over 5,000 miles of transmission lines in about 80 counties.
The LCRA runs more than 40 parks along the length of the Colorado River between Central Texas and the coast.