CC MEETING: April 18, 2017
DATE: April 11, 2017
TO: Erin Rinehart, City Manager
FROM: Scott Hudson, Environmental Services Director
Title
Hold A Public Hearing For A Municipal Setting Designation Ordinance For Downtown Carrollton.
Body
BACKGROUND:
This agenda item is a public hearing for the approval of a municipal setting designation ordinance prohibiting the use of the designated groundwater from beneath the designated property generally located in downtown Carrollton and granting support to the city’s request for a Municipal Setting Designation (MSD) certification from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
An MSD is an official state designation given to a property certifying that the groundwater beneath the designated property is not used as potable water and is prohibited from future use as potable water because that groundwater is contaminated in excess of the applicable potable-water protective concentration levels set forth by the TCEQ. The purpose of the MSD law is to provide an alternative pathway for regulatory closure for contaminated properties where the groundwater is not being used as the potable water supply. An MSD can be a significant economic development tool. A requirement for a successful MSD certification from the state is an MSD ordinance from the city having territorial jurisdiction over the designated property. The city ordinance must prohibit the use of the groundwater from beneath the designated property as potable water and must express support for the MSD application.
The designated property is located in the downtown area of Carrollton and covers an area of approximate 220 acres. It is roughly bounded on the north by Hutton Branch Creek, on the east by Erie Street and the DART Green Line, on the south by Crosby Road and on the west by Upfield Drive. The designated shallow aquifer is within 50 feet of the surface.
The city retained an environmental consulting firm to conduct necessary research, provide recommendations, and assist in preparing the materials to support the city’s request for its MSD state certification. The final application is the result of collaboration between Cirrus Associates and Environmental Services staff.
Notices of the public meetings and public hearings were sent, a sign on the property was posted for public information and the public meeting was held on March 27, 2017 at the Josey Ranch Public Library. The April 18, 2017 City Council meeting is the forum for the required public hearing of the city’s MSD ordinance application.
IMPACT ON COMMUNITY SUSTAINABILITY:
While the city contracts with Dallas Water Utilities for its public water supply, the city also has supplemental public water supply wells within five miles from the designated property. Hydrological analysis shows that groundwater flows to the south and west, away from the city of Carrollton wells. The Twin Mountains Aquifer supplying the city wells is approximately 2,000 feet beneath the designated shallow groundwater and there are clay-rich units that act as a barrier to vertical migration between that designated shallow groundwater and the supply aquifer. Based on these findings and the advice of its consultant, staff has determined that the proposed MSD poses essentially no risk to the city’s wells.
Through extensive research the city has not been able to identify any parties utilizing the designated groundwater as a source of potable water. Due to marginal quantity and quality, the designated groundwater is not valuable as a potable water source. The MSD will not have an adverse effect on the current or future water resource needs of the citizens or the city of Carrollton.
Support for this application will encourage the economic development of the designated property. Staff is of the opinion that it is in the best interest of the public and the city to support this application as it will protect the public from contaminated groundwater.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION/ACTION DESIRED:
Staff recommends that City Council adopt the attached ordinance prohibiting use of designated groundwater and supporting the city’s application for a Municipal Setting Designation.