diff --git a/roles/ensure-babel/README.rst b/roles/ensure-babel/README.rst
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e8dc70f57
--- /dev/null
+++ b/roles/ensure-babel/README.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+Ensure babel is installed
+
+**Role Variables**
+
+.. zuul:rolevar:: constraints_file
+
+   Optional path to a pip constraints file for installing python libraries.
diff --git a/roles/ensure-babel/tasks/main.yaml b/roles/ensure-babel/tasks/main.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b61734965
--- /dev/null
+++ b/roles/ensure-babel/tasks/main.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+- name: Install gettext package
+  package:
+    name: gettext
+    state: present
+  become: yes
+
+- name: Check to see if the constraints file exists
+  stat:
+    path: "{{ constraints_file|default('missing') }}"
+    get_checksum: false
+    get_mime: false
+    get_md5: false
+  register: stat_results
+  when: constraints_file is defined
+
+- name: Record file location
+  set_fact:
+    upper_constraints: "-c {{ constraints_file }}"
+  when: not stat_results|skipped and stat_results.stat.exists
+
+- name: Install babel
+  pip:
+    name:
+      - pbr
+      - Babel
+      - lxml
+      - requests
+      # Install subunit for the subunit output stream for
+      # healthcheck.openstack.org.
+      # TODO(mordred) Does this need to be os-testr or can it just be subunit?
+      - os-testr
+    extra_args: "--user {{ upper_constraints|default('') }}"
diff --git a/roles/ensure-reno/README.rst b/roles/ensure-reno/README.rst
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..87b233636
--- /dev/null
+++ b/roles/ensure-reno/README.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+Ensure reno is installed
+
+**Role Variables**
+
+.. zuul:rolevar:: constraints_file
+
+   Optional path to a pip constraints file for installing python libraries.
+
+.. zuul:rolevar:: zuul_work_dir
+   :default: {{ zuul.project.src_dir }}
+
+   Directory to operate in. Needed only for a little while until we have
+   projects migrated to not need to be installed just to generate
+   release notes.
diff --git a/roles/ensure-reno/defaults/main.yaml b/roles/ensure-reno/defaults/main.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9739eb171
--- /dev/null
+++ b/roles/ensure-reno/defaults/main.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+zuul_work_dir: "{{ zuul.project.src_dir }}"
diff --git a/roles/ensure-reno/tasks/main.yaml b/roles/ensure-reno/tasks/main.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b02eac753
--- /dev/null
+++ b/roles/ensure-reno/tasks/main.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+- name: Install gettext package
+  package:
+    name: gettext
+    state: present
+  become: yes
+
+- name: Check to see if the constraints file exists
+  stat:
+    path: "{{ constraints_file|default('missing') }}"
+    get_checksum: false
+    get_mime: false
+    get_md5: false
+  register: stat_results
+  when: constraints_file is defined
+
+- name: Record file location
+  set_fact:
+    upper_constraints: "-c {{ constraints_file }}"
+  when: not stat_results|skipped and stat_results.stat.exists
+
+- name: Install reno
+  pip:
+    name:
+      - sphinx
+      - openstackdocstheme
+      - reno
+    extra_args: "--user {{ upper_constraints|default('') }}"
+
+- name: Install extra requirements if needed
+  shell:
+    chdir: '{{ zuul_work_dir }}'
+    executable: /bin/bash
+    cmd: |
+      # TODO(jaegerandi): Remove once all repos are fixed.
+      # Try installing current repo in case it needs to be available for
+      # example for version number calculation. Ignore any failures here.
+      if [ -f setup.cfg ] ; then
+          pip install --user . || true
+      fi