Plano commission reinstates expired site plan for Rowlett Creek wastewater plant

The City of Plano Planning and Zoning Commission on Sept. 2 voted 8-0 to reinstate a revised site plan for the Rowlett Creek Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant, allowing the North Texas Municipal Water District more time to complete contractor selection and begin construction. The plant site is at the northeast corner of Fourteenth Street and Los Rios Boulevard.

Staff said the commission originally approved the revised site plan on June 19, 2023, and that the approval expired on June 19, 2025, because construction had not begun. Planning staff cited Section 3.700 of Article 3 of the zoning ordinance as the provision allowing the property owner to petition to reinstate an approval within 60 days before or after lapse.

Why it matters: Mark Simon, director of engineering for the North Texas Municipal Water District, told commissioners the project will be large in scale and complex to build while the plant remains in operation. "We bid this project in 2024. It came in around $300,000,000," Simon said. He said the plant currently treats roughly half of Plano's flow and about 25 to 30 percent of Richardson's flow, so contractors must sequence work to keep treatment online.

Simon described two factors driving the request: a change to the contracting approach and an external electrical upgrade timeline. The district shifted to a construction-manager-at-risk procurement to allow the work to be divided into smaller bid packages that contractors can schedule around active portions of the plant. He also said portions of the plant need new power feeds; the district must coordinate timing with the local utility, Encore, which the district cannot control.

Staff recommended reinstatement because no new zoning regulations applied to the expired plan and the applicant explained the reasons for the lapse. Commissioners asked about what qualifies as construction and permit thresholds; city staff explained that an approved plan on file is required before the engineering and building departments will issue permits. With reinstatement, the applicant can apply for the needed permits and proceed.

Commissioner Ali moved to approve the reinstatement request as recommended by staff; Commissioner Brunoff seconded. The motion passed 8-0.

The vote only reinstates the expired revised site plan for another two years; it does not represent construction completion or final acceptance of any contractor bids. Staff said the applicant must correct a map labeling error (Fourteenth Street mislabeled as Los Rios Boulevard) before the plan is stamped, but staff indicated that correction can be coordinated with the applicant and need not be a motion condition.

Next steps: With reinstatement the district can resume permit submittals and proceed with its construction-manager-at-risk procurement and required coordination with Encore for power upgrades. No construction timeline was specified at the commission meeting.