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(a) A person, including the City of Fort Worth, seeking city council approval of a municipal setting designation (MSD) for property within the corporate limits of the City of Fort Worth, or within its extraterritorial jurisdiction, shall file six copies of an application with the director. An application may be filed in person, by United States mail, or by a document delivery service.
(b) An application shall be on a form provided by the director, and shall contain:
(1) Applicant’s name and address, and the name, address, daytime telephone number and email address of a contact person;
(2) The location and legal description of the proposed outer boundaries of the MSD;
(3) A statement as to whether applicant has filed an application with the executive director of the commission for an MSD for the property;
(4) A statement as to whether a public drinking water supply system exists that satisfies the requirements of Tex. Health and Safety Code Chapter 341 and that supplies or is capable of supplying drinking water to the property for which the MSD is sought, and property within one-half mile of the property for which the MSD is sought;
(5) A description of the groundwater sought to be restricted, including the identified chemicals of concern therein and the levels of contamination known to applicant, and the identified vertical and horizontal area of the contamination. If applicant has not documented groundwater contamination offsite that originates from the property for which an MSD is sought, the application shall include a statement as to whether contamination more likely than not exceeds a residential assessment level offsite and the basis for that statement;
(6) Identification of the person(s) responsible for the contamination of the groundwater, if known;
(7) A listing of:
a. All owners of real property lying within one-half mile of the subject property, as the ownership appears on the last approved city tax roll;
b. All state-registered private water wells within five miles from the boundary of the property for which the designation is sought, including a notation of those wells that are used for potable water purposes (if known), and a statement as to whether applicant has provided the owners with notice as provided in Tex. Health and Safety Code § 361.805;
c. Of each retail public utility that owns or operates a groundwater supply well located not more than five miles from the property for which the MSD is sought, and a statement as to whether applicant has provided the utilities with notice as provided in Tex. Health and Safety Code § 361.805; and
d. Each municipality, other than the City of Fort Worth, with a boundary located not more than one-half mile from the property for which the MSD is sought; or that owns or operates a groundwater supply well located not more than five miles from the property for which the MSD is sought; and a statement as to whether applicant has provided the municipalities with notice as provided in Tex. Health and Safety Code § 361.805;
(8) A copy of the application to the executive director of the commission, if filed;
(9) A site map, drawn to scale, including a metes and bounds description of the property, the boundary of the proposed MSD, the location of groundwater on the property, and the extent of groundwater contamination to the limits that it has been defined. The map shall include a statement by a professional land surveyor registered by the Texas board of professional surveying attesting to the accuracy of the metes and bounds property description; and
(10) Any other information that the director deems pertinent.
(c) The application shall be signed by an authorized representative of the applicant and shall contain the following certification statement:
“I certify under penalty of law that this document and all attachments were prepared under my direction or supervision in a manner designed to assure that qualified personnel properly gather and evaluate the information submitted. Based on my inquiry of the person or persons directly responsible for gathering the information, the information submitted is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, true, accurate, and complete. I am aware that there are significant penalties for submitting false information, including the possibility of fine and imprisonment for knowing violations.”
(d) An application shall be accompanied by:
(1) A set of printed mailing labels with the names and addresses of persons listed in subsection (b)(7) above;
(2) An electronic file of the names and addresses of persons listed in subsection (b)(7) above, in a format acceptable to the director and compatible with city information systems; and
(3) An application fee in an amount set by city council by ordinance.
(e) An applicant may withdraw its application in writing by letter sent certified mail, return receipt requested, to the director, and shall forfeit the application fee. If the director has not issued public notice prior to the receipt of the withdrawal letter, the applicant may reapply at any time. If public notice has issued, a new application is subject to the limitations of § 12.5-420.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005)
(a) Upon receiving an application for an MSD approval, the director will distribute a copy to his or her designee within the environmental management department, and to the city’s water department, transportation and public works department, and planning and development department for staff review. The purpose of the review is to determine whether the application is complete, and whether any current or future city property or other interests have the potential to be impacted by the proposed MSD. City staff shall not be tasked with conducting an environmental risk assessment of the application.
(b) City staff must send a written report to the director within ten calendar days of receiving the application, noting any discrepancies in the application, and advising of any city interests that may potentially be impacted by the proposed MSD.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005; Ord. 17522, § 5, passed 4-27-2007; Ord. 18319-09-2008, § 7, passed 9-30-2008)
(a) Following staff review, if the director determines that the application is complete, he or she will schedule a public meeting and a public hearing. The public meeting must be held prior to the public hearing.
(1) A public meeting will be scheduled at a time no later than 45 days following the day the application was received by the city; and
(2) A public hearing will be scheduled at a time no later than 60 days following the day the application was received by the city.
(b) The date that an application is deemed to have been received by the city is the date that the application was received by the director, as indicated by the file date stamped on the application package by the department of environmental management.
(c) If the director determines that the application is incomplete, he or she will return the application to applicant, noting the deficiencies in writing. The applicant shall have 30 days from the date of the deficiency letter to correct the deficiencies and resubmit the application. If the applicant fails to submit a corrected application within the allotted time, the application shall be deemed to be withdrawn and the application fee forfeited.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005)
(a) Notice of the public meeting and the public hearing on an MSD application may be combined and must include the date, time and location of the two events, the identity of the applicant, the location and legal description of the property for which the MSD is sought, the purpose of the MSD, the type of contamination identified in the groundwater of the property for which the MSD is sought, and a statement that a copy of the application is available for public viewing at a specified Fort Worth Public Library facility. Notice will be made as follows:
(1) The director will provide published notice of a public meeting and a public hearing for a proposed MSD by means of a legal advertisement appearing in the official newspaper of the city, or a paper of general circulation, not less than 15 days before the public meeting;
(2) The director will provide posted notice of a public meeting and a public hearing by requesting that the city secretary post the notice at city hall, in a place readily accessible to the general public at all times, not less than 15 days before the public meeting; and
(3) The director will serve written notice of a public meeting and a public hearing for a proposed MSD not less than 15 days before the date set for the public meeting. Such notice shall be deemed served when it is deposited, properly addressed and regular postage paid, in the United States mail. Notice will be served to:
a. The applicant;
b. The list provided by applicant of owners of real property lying within one-half mile of the subject property, as the ownership appears on the last approved city tax roll;
c. The list provided by applicant of persons who own private registered water wells within five miles of the subject property;
d. The list provided by applicant of each retail public utility that owns or operates a groundwater supply well located not more than five miles from the property for which the MSD is sought; and
e. The list provided by applicant of each municipality with a boundary located not more than one-half mile from the property for which the MSD is sought or that owns or operates a groundwater supply well located not more than five miles from the property for which the MSD is sought.
(b) The director will direct the erection of at least one sign upon the property for which an MSD has been requested. Where possible such sign or signs must be located in a conspicuous place or places upon such property at a point or points nearest any right-of-way, street, roadway or public thoroughfare adjacent to such property. Such sign(s) must be so erected not less than 15 days before the date set for the public meeting. Any such sign(s) will be removed subsequent to final action by the city council on the MSD application. The sign(s) must state that an MSD has been requested for the site and that additional information can be acquired by telephoning the number listed thereon or visiting the web site address listed thereon. The erection and/or the continued maintenance of any such sign shall not be deemed a condition precedent to the holding of any public meeting or public hearing or to any official action concerning the MSD application.
(c) The director will send a copy of the application to the Fort Worth Public Library facility located nearest to the property that is the subject of the application, and request that it be displayed for public review. The librarian for the facility will display the application in a publicly accessible area of the library until at least the completion of city council action on the application, or the withdrawal of the application by applicant.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005)
(a) The purpose of a public meeting is for the applicant to provide information to the affected community about MSDs and the application and to obtain input on the application prior to a formal hearing before the city council.
(b) The public meeting will be held in the evening at a location convenient to the affected community.
(c) The applicant or applicant’s representative must appear at the public meeting. If the applicant fails to appear at the public meeting either in person or by representative, the application shall be deemed withdrawn and the application fee forfeited.
(d) The director will be responsible for the conduct of the meeting. He or she will give the applicant or the applicant’s representative the opportunity to present its reasons for requesting an MSD, and will give members of the affected community the opportunity to ask the applicant questions or make oral comments on the application.
(e) The director will make a tape recording of the public meeting available for the public.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005)
(a) Prior to the hearing, the director will provide the city council with a written report summarizing the request for the MSD approval, including any concerns raised by the reviewing departments, and will attach a copy of the application to the report.
(b) The applicant or applicant’s representative must appear at the hearing and present the request for an MSD approval. If the applicant fails to appear at the hearing either in person or by representative, the application shall be deemed withdrawn and the application fee forfeited.
(c) Persons wishing to speak either in favor of or against the application will be provided the opportunity in accordance with city council rules or guidelines for public hearings.
(d) Following the conclusion of the public hearing, the city council may deliberate the matter of the application, and then may either:
(1) Vote to approve or disapprove the application; or
(2) Postpone action on the application to a future date.
(e) In order to approve an application, the city council must:
(1) Adopt a resolution supporting the application to the Texas commission on environmental quality; and
(2) Enact an ordinance prohibiting the potable use of designated groundwater from beneath the property. The ordinance must include a metes and bounds description of the property to which the ordinance applies; a listing of the contaminants; and a statement that the ordinance is necessary because the contaminant concentrations exceed potable water standards.
(f) In the ordinance enacted pursuant to subsection (e)(2) above, city council may place other reasonable restrictions on the use of designated groundwater from beneath the property.
(g) City council approval of an application shall not be deemed to waive the city’s right to comment on an MSD application that has been filed with the executive director of the Texas commission on environmental quality as provided by Tex. Health and Safety Code § 361.805.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005)
If after public hearing the city council disapproves an application, or if the applicant has withdrawn its application after public notice has issued, no new MSD applications for the property shall be accepted by the city or scheduled for a hearing by the city council within a period of 12 months of the date of disapproval or withdrawal.
(Ord. 16259, § 2, passed 1-11-2005)
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