Little did the reserved engineer know as he watched TV images of residents waiting in long lines for bottled water that he would be the one to oversee the massive, multibillion-dollar effort to finally bring the city’s aging and long-neglected water systems into the 21st century.

Third-party interim engineer-manager Ted Henifin now adds city's neglected wastewater system to his portfolio since being named last year by a U.S. judge to run its inadequate and leaking drinking water system.

The city's federally named water manager said funding would address major water system leaks and boost pumping capacity.