Helotes resident urges council to publicize private well registration amid opposition to Lennar MUD and proposed wastewater plant
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Summary
Stuart Birnam told the council he and allied groups are contesting a wastewater treatment plant and a related Municipal Utility District application tied to Lennar, reported legal action and expense, warned Trinity Aquifer wells near Helotes could be affected by effluent, and asked officials to urge residents to register private wells for emergency contact.
Stuart Birnam, a board member of the Trinity Glen Rose Groundwater Conservation District and a steering committee member of the Scenic Loop Helotes Creek Alliance, used the city’s public-comment period to urge Helotes officials to urge private-well registration and to describe ongoing legal and organizing efforts against a proposed wastewater treatment plant tied to a Lennar MUD application.
Birnam said the City of San Antonio unanimously rejected the MUD application and that Lennar sought roughly $150,000,000 in public financing tied to the project. He told the council that, despite the San Antonio decision, crews began clearing trees at the site two days later. "We have not given up," Birnam told the council, and he said the alliance had filed in district court in Austin to contest a permit he argued contained many errors.
Birnam gave several cost figures he said the alliance and neighboring jurisdictions have spent opposing the project: about $165,000 on attorneys and expert witnesses by the alliance, $20,000 contributed by the City of Grey Forest over two years, and a recurring $10,000-per-year commitment by Grey Forest’s council. He said the alliance is contesting placement of a wastewater treatment plant at what he named as "Quahalote Ranch."
The speaker emphasized local groundwater exposure, saying there are "about 500 registered wells" in the district that tap the Trinity Aquifer and that effluent could directly affect those wells. He asked the mayor and council to "try to get a message out" that residents should register their wells, explaining the registration is not for usage monitoring but so authorities could contact owners in the event of a spill.
Birnam named two council members he credited for raising the matter with the city. He concluded by urging continued conversation and signaled that litigation challenging permitting decisions was underway.
The council did not take formal action on the public comment; no city staff response or formal staff direction was recorded in the transcript.
Ending: The council moved on to routine agenda business after public comment.
