SAN ANTONIO – It was a sign of transition Monday outside the former local Abengoa offices along Loop 410 near McCullough.
Crews removed the Abengoa name from the office marquee and replaced it with the Garney Construction logo.
Garney finalized its takeover of the Vista Ridge Pipeline project earlier this month after Abengoa lost its majority stake due to the financial struggles of its parent company in Spain.
Employees gathered outside to watch the sign replacement Monday, many of them snapping photos of the process.
“Out with the old, in with the new,” said Scott Parrish, chief operating officer of Garney Construction.
Garney was involved from the get-go in the pipeline project spearheaded by San Antonio Water System, but initially Garney was in charge of the construction phase.
The Vista Ridge project will create 142 miles of pipe to pump water from Burleson County to Bexar County.
“They’ve already funded their 20 percent,” Parrish said of Abengoa. “They have no more future role in the project other than just a passive investment.”
“We're evolving the project design, we're getting the required permits in place and we're purchasing right-of-way,” he added.
Construction is set to begin early next year and last through 2019.
Parrish said water should be flowing by 2020.
The Kansas City-based construction company has worked on other projects with SAWS in the past, though nothing quite like Vista Ridge.
"Garney Construction has a 30-year history with SAWS and delivering projects for SAWS water ratepayers,” Parrish said. “We’re here for the next 30 years for SAWS. So I would feel comforted in the fact that you've got a company that can get the project to the finish line and secure the water future for San Antonio.”