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Frisco town hall saves controversy for last
City Manager George Purefoy
By Jessica Rush, jrush@acnpapers.com
With 12 items on Monday night’s town hall meeting agenda, anyone who left early missed the imperative subjects that were addressed near the end. City Manager George Purefoy gave an update on the Exide Technologies battery recycling plant and the council’s recommendation for next year’s property tax rate.
“It’s probably the most important issue facing us today,” Council Member Bob Allen said about lead pollution from the Exide plant. “Our job is to protect the citizens and the public. That’s why we should consider it the most important issue.”
Stricter lead emission rules by the Environmental Protection Agency, which go into affect this October, would mean Exide fails to meet air quality standards based on computer models of a nonattainment area or a zone around the plant tested for lead pollution. Exide and city officials do not agree with the EPA’s new boundaries, and Purefoy sent a letter to the EPA in August asking them to reconsider the theoretical computer modeling.
The proposed nonattainment area includes Pizza Hut Park and Frisco Square in the north and reaches as far south as Frisco High School. At the meeting, a prepared slide said the proposed nonattainment zone was based on a “what-if” model and that the city was requesting the EPA base it on a “what-is” model. He said the city was not defending Exide, but asking instead that the EPA use the air-monitoring data that has been collected around the plant for decades. Purefoy made it clear that Frisco does not decide the standards the plant is required to operate within.
“The city does not have the right to regulate what has already been preempted by state and federal government,” Purefoy said.
The presentation showed that the city would request Exide to take action if it is eventually declared in violation of the EPA standards.
“It is a very difficult situation … but it is the highest priority,” Mayor Maher Maso said. “They are going to provide the data we need to make sure our citizens are protected. If that does not happen, you will hear more from us.”
Purefoy also mentioned that the EPA recently took some soil samples from around the plant. He expects to hear the results within the next few weeks before the city begins another health risk study for those who live around the plant.
During the last portion of the meeting, a question and answer session, a resident asked about the 1.26 cent proposed property tax rate increase from 46.5 cents per $100 assessed valuation to 47.76 cents per $100 assessed valuation.
“The council has instructed us they don’t intend to raise taxes this year,” Purefoy said.
His statement came after more than one resident had brought up the budget, asking the council to think outside the box when it came to cutting expenditures. The budget has yet to be approved, and residents have one more chance to voice their opinions. The next public hearing is scheduled for Sept. 7 during the council’s regular meeting.
In other business on Monday:
* Frisco is in the marketing stage for the NCAA Division I football championship at Pizza Hut Park on Jan. 7. Through newspaper advertising, billboards and a TV commercial, officials hope to garner enthusiasm for the sporting event, which will include a full-scale pep rally, tailgating and an impact on the tax base as visitors from all over travel to watch the high profile game. “I expect it to be as big of an event as we’ve ever had in Frisco,” Council Member Scott Johnson said. “The expectation is that this will be an important community event for years to come.” Tickets go on sale Sept. 13 to the general public, and information can be found at www.ncaa.com/football.
* 10th – 12th grade students who live in Frisco or attend Frisco ISD have until 3 p.m. Sept. 10 to apply for the Mayor’s Youth Council. The council was started as an opportunity to get high school students involved in the community, and in the past, the group has organized projects like “A Day with the Mayor” and Battle of the Bands. They meet once a month as a group, and subcommittees meet more often to work on specific projects. Applications can be found at www.friscotexas.gov/myc.
* To give students more exposure to science, math and the arts, the city is opening the Frisco Discovery Center Oct. 2 to the public. A 10,000 square foot Black Box Theater has been sound proofed for performances, and Sci-Tech is working directly with the school district to tie exhibits into the curriculum. Assistant City Manager Ron Patterson reported the theater and gallery space have already been booked through the end of this year, and they predict thousands of students will go to the next exhibit, “The Math Midway,” which challenges children to use math in ways that apply to them every day.
* A video from the Environmental Collection Center demonstrated how Frisco residents can drop off paper, cardboard, plastics, glass, tin and aluminum in containers to be recycled. The center has specific procedures for disposing electronics and chemical waste, and they even handle plastic bags and Styrofoam packaging for reuse. Residents can take advantage of the reuse center, which holds shelves of donated automotive products, cleaners and paints. The stock of leftover paints, cleaners and pesticides are available for free for residents on a first come, first serve basis to use on small projects. Visit www.friscotexas.gov/recycle for information.
* As a result of Frisco’s growing population, last year the city was required to enact a storm water management program. Storm water comes from all water sources and is not absorbed into the ground, so it can pick up harmful waste before it drains into the drinking water sources. Water education coordinator, Melody Emadiazar, gave residents tips to improve the quality of storm water by maintaining oil leaks in cars, using nontoxic or natural household cleaning products, picking up pet waste, and keeping yards moderately fertilized.
The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
Oscar Nelson wrote on Sep 2, 2010 1:37 PM:
" The issue here should not be about the parameters of the non-attainment area, but about the fact that this plant is not doing everything it can to reduce the amount of hazardous emissions its exposing the community to every day. Papers presented at environmental conferences show that by modifying a technology (WESP) thats been around for decades to smelting facilities, it is possible to almost eliminate lead, arsenic and other hazardous emissions completely. The same technology can be retrofitted for existing factories. Knowing that this technology is available and that its already being implemented successfully, theres no reason the Exide plant should be settling for non-attainment while they continue to expose workers and the community to toxic emissions. "
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