Staff Writer | Mayor of Scottsdale
After pushing for months for a comprehensive examination of Scottsdale’s water resources, Mayor Lisa Borowsky says the city now has a clear picture of its water future and must move aggressively to protect it.
On Tuesday, Oct. 20 Scottsdale City Council received an extensive work study examining the city’s current water portfolio, conservation programs, drought planning and potential new water supplies.
Mayor Borowsky brought forward the idea for the comprehensive water work study and advocated for it for several months leading up to the Oct. 20 presentation.
Mayor Borowsky serves on the Board of Directors at the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association, which earlier today voted to move forward with a regional messaging campaign focused on educating the public on statewide water conservation opportunities.
Furthermore, Mayor Borowsky is a member of the Coalition for Protecting Arizona’s Lifeline, which is a nonpartisan alliance of leaders at the Central Arizona Project focused on educating, advocating and elevating the importance of long-term water security and economic resilience in our state.
The work study presentation held this past Tuesday at City Hall, 3939 N. Drinkwater Blvd., examined projects ranging from additional reclaimed and advanced purified water infrastructure to the Harquahala Valley and Bartlett Dam expansion.
“This was about getting everything on the table and having an honest, comprehensive discussion about where Scottsdale stands today and what we need to do to secure our water future,” Mayor Lisa Borowsky said. “We cannot wait for the next shortage declaration or crisis to start thinking about conservation and new supplies. We need to get ahead of the problem.”
The discussion comes as Scottsdale remains heavily reliant on Colorado River water. The city has rights to 81,271 acre-feet through the Central Arizona Project, while the presentation outlined a potential 2027 CAP supply of 67,455 acre-feet, representing a 17% reduction from the city’s allocation.
For Ms. Borowsky, the Oct. 20 presentation was not intended to be the end of the conversation. She is calling for the city to examine additional conservation measures, including:
- At the request of Mayor Borowsky — and supported by her City Council colleagues — the City Attorney’s Office is developing a large-water-user ordinance designed to address significant water consumption and encourage greater efficiency for new development projects.
- Expansion of smart-water-meter technology to help identify opportunities to reduce water waste, including unnecessary irrigation during periods of rain.
- Exploration of hot-water recirculation systems to reduce potable water wasted while residents wait for hot water to reach faucets and showers.
- Updating Scottsdale’s rainwater harvesting ordinance to encourage greater capture and productive use of rainfall.
Those proposals would complement conservation initiatives already under way, Mayor Borowsky contends pointing out Scottsdale reported that its WaterSmart portal provides customers with hourly-use information, personalized data and leak alerts. Numbers show leak-detection efforts prevented 35 million gallons in losses in 2025 and resulted in 6,271 leak alerts to customers.
The city also approved 346 conservation rebates totaling $628,233 in fiscal year 2025-26, including programs for grass removal, irrigation controllers, smart-home water-monitoring devices and commercial water-management technology.
“The best gallon of water is the gallon not used, but saved,” Mayor Borowsky points out. “Conservation doesn’t have to mean sacrificing our quality of life. It means being smarter about the water we have, embracing technology and eliminating unnecessary waste wherever we can.”
Securing new water for Scottsdale
At the same time, Mayor Borowsky has emphasized that conservation alone cannot carry Scottsdale through the uncertainties surrounding the Colorado River.
Mayor Borowsky played a critical role in Scottsdale’s successful acquisition of an additional 15,000 acre-feet of long-term storage credits associated with the Harquahala project, building upon a water strategy that already includes city ownership of 1,279 acres in the Harquahala Valley and an entitlement of 3,837 acre-feet per year. Mayor Borowsky contends these efforts to source transportable water continue in an effort to shore up future supply
At Harquahala Valley, municipal water staff estimate the additional long-term storage credits and infrastructure investment comes to a value of $32 million today.
“Securing 15,000 acre-feet of additional water storage credits is exactly the kind of long-range action Scottsdale needs to be taking,” Mayor Borowsky said. “We have to conserve the water we have while continuing to pursue new supplies that reduce our dependence on the Colorado River. Those two strategies must move forward together.”
Among efforts to diversify the city’s water portfolio is the potential for a sixth wastewater pumpback station, an advanced water treatment exchange using the CAP canal and new advanced water purification facilities at the Scottsdale Water Campus. Depending on the project, the presentation projected annual yields ranging from 1,800 to 6,000 acre-feet, numbers show.
City staff also identified next steps that include completing an updated Drought Management Plan for council consideration in spring 2027, evaluating additional conservation rebates through public workshops, pursuing infrastructure improvements and continuing work with regional and federal water partners.
“My focus is what Scottsdale looks like 10, 20 and 50 years from now,” Mayor Borowsky said. “Water security is economic security. It is neighborhood security. It is fundamental to Scottsdale’s future. We have an obligation to the next generation to act while we have the opportunity, rather than wait until our options become fewer and more expensive.”
