Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Industrial Expansion topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission backs Palladio expansion with planned‑development conditions after health concerns raised
Summary
The commission unanimously recommended a planned‑development rezoning to allow a Palladio chemical manufacturing expansion (116,000 sf building and rail spurs) on about 10.4 acres; residents warned of toxic off‑gases while staff pointed to TCEQ permitting and PD conditions to limit unintended uses.
The Temple Planning and Zoning Commission on Nov. 17 voted unanimously to recommend approval of a planned‑development rezoning (FY26‑2‑ZC) that would allow a chemical manufacturing facility for Palladio on about 10.405 acres in the Temple Industrial Park. Staff framed the request as an expansion of existing industrial operations and said a PD limits other heavy industrial uses that could otherwise occupy a heavy‑industrial zoning.
Planner Mister Deckman described the proposal: Palladio plans to add a roughly 116,000‑square‑foot production/warehouse building and two rail spurs to its site, and the PD carries binding site‑plan conditions mirroring the company’s prior conditional‑use permit. Deckman said engineers found options to redesign a nearby city sewer line to allow the rail spur to cross, that 12‑inch water lines and fire hydrants are available for fire flow, and that the PD would ensure compliance with state permitting and local fire, drainage and development codes.
Residents voiced strong opposition during the public hearing. Garrett Kreps, who lives on Shine Branch Road, urged commissioners to terminate the rezoning because of health and safety concerns, saying Palladio “produce[s] bioacrylamide monomers” and warning of hazardous off‑gases including acrylonitrile and hydrogen cyanide. Kreps called those gases “toxic” and asserted wind patterns could carry emissions toward Lake Belton. Carly Kreps said she feared long‑term carcinogenic impacts and urged commissioners to take community health seriously.
Deckman responded that the proposed facility is already subject to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) permitting for any air emissions and that the PD contains conditions and site controls comparable to the company’s earlier conditional‑use permit. He described typical product lines as polymers and monomers used for flocculants, scale inhibitors and fracking‑related materials, and said building the rail spurs will reduce truck trips. Deckman emphasized staff’s view that the PD minimizes the risk that other heavy‑industrial uses could occupy the site.
Commissioner Smith moved and Commissioner Walker seconded the recommendation to approve FY26‑2‑ZC; roll call recorded unanimous ayes. The commission’s recommendation will go to City Council (first reading Dec. 4; final reading Dec. 18).
