Title
Consider/Discuss/Act on an Ordinance Supporting a Municipal Setting Designation (MSD) Certification for Multiple Parcels of Land Totaling Approximately 31.12 Acres Located East of Highway 5 or North McDonald Street to Prohibit Potable Use of the Groundwater Beneath the Designated Property
Summary
COUNCIL GOAL: Operational Excellence
Enhance the Quality of Life in McKinney
(5E: Maximize partnerships between the City of McKinney and private industry)
MEETING DATE: August 17, 2021
DEPARTMENT: Development Services / Engineering
CONTACT: Kyle Odom, Environmental Engineering Manager
RECOMMENDED CITY COUNCIL ACTION: Approval of Ordinance
ITEM SUMMARY:
• This Ordinance demonstrates support of a Municipal Setting Designation (MSD) certification by the City of McKinney for the properties as shown on the attached agenda item locator map east of North McDonald Street. The properties, in aggregate, are known as the “Designated Property”.
• An ordinance is required to support a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) certified MSD, prohibiting potable use of the site’s underlying groundwater.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
• During due diligence activities within the Designated Property (Phase I Environmental Site Assessment and subsequent Phase II Environmental Site Assessment), groundwater contamination was identified and the City is seeking to address the contamination through passage of an MSD to prohibit potable use of groundwater within the Designated Property.
• Contaminants noted in the groundwater include volatile organic compounds (VOCs), total hydrocarbons (TPH), ammonia, nitrate, and metals. Concentrations of benzene, methyl tertiary-butyl benzene, TPH, ammonia, nitrate, arsenic, lead, and methylene chloride were noted above groundwater-ingestion based regulatory thresholds.
• Impacted groundwater at the Designated Property occurs from five (5) to 20 feet below the ground surface.
• Beneath the shallow groundwater-bearing unit is a limestone formation preventing vertical migration to deeper units.
• Subchapter W of the Texas Health & Safety Code provides statutory authority for tracts of land to be classified with a “Municipal Setting Designation” by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the local governing body when faced with groundwater investigations and response action requirements.
• MSDs are intended to protect public health by prohibiting potable use of groundwater within the Designated Property seeking MSD certification.
• The MSD ordinance will prohibit the use of groundwater associated with the specific site for any potable purpose; thereby lessening the need for expensive and time-consuming groundwater remediation to potable-use levels as typically required by State regulations.
• An MSD is appropriate only at locations currently served by a public water supply and where there are no existing or proposed water wells.
• The TCEQ will not certify an MSD without municipal support via ordinance restricting the use of groundwater at the MSD property.
• Five MSD ordinances have previously been approved within the City, and no issues have arisen due to the designations.
• Upon certification of an MSD, the property is still subject to Texas Health and Safety Code §361.808 pertaining to solid waste, hazardous waste, public safety, and the environment.
• The MSD does not relinquish any requirements that may be enforced by the State concerning non-consumptive use/effects of contaminated groundwater.
SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS:
• Other municipalities in the region have various MSD ordinances, including Dallas and Fort Worth.
• Without providing support to this or future appropriate MSD applications, development or transfer of those properties may be extremely difficult and potential redevelopment may be delayed or inhibited.
• This Ordinance may be repealed if TCEQ denies the MSD application for any reason.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY:
• All expenses associated with the application for and regulation of the MSD will be borne solely by the City.
• Expenses are estimated to be $25,000.
• Funds are available in Capital Improvements Program project FC1707 Municipal Complex Design and Construction.
• There is currently $1,193,699 available in FC1707.
• Additional funding is expected to be added to the project as it progresses.
BOARD OR COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: N/A
SUPPORTING MATERIALS:
• Ordinance
• City Agenda Item Locator Maps