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City Plan Commission delays Cantera Commercial plat after written stormwater warning
Summary
The City Plan Commission on July 16 voted 5–1 to postpone final action on the Cantera Commercial Center replat (SUSU26-00025) for two weeks after a written comment warned that Watershed F could overload Pond 2 during a 100-year storm; the applicant said drainage plans are conceptual and offered to present details at the rescheduled hearing.
The El Paso City Plan Commission voted to postpone consideration of the Cantera Commercial Center final plat (SUSU26-00025) for two weeks after a written comment raised concerns about stormwater calculations and ponding capacity.
Chair Lauren Hanson read the written comment into the record, which said engineering review in the packet indicated Watershed F would overload Pond 2 in a 100-year storm and recommended conditioning any final plat approval on the developer correcting watershed arithmetic and resizing Pond 2 prior to recordation. The comment argued the municipal code requires structural adequacy for stormwater infrastructure before a plat may be recorded.
Martin Gomez, the applicant’s representative from GRB Integrated Engineering Solutions LLC, responded that the drainage plan is currently conceptual and that the project has sufficient ponding capacity; he said the engineering team could present detailed drainage information at the rescheduled hearing.
After brief discussion the Commission moved to postpone the item. On the roll call vote Commissioners Badillo, Hansen, Uribe, Regan and Dolowalski voted yes; Commissioner Borrego voted no. The Chair announced the item postponed and scheduled for the next appropriate hearing.
Why it matters: The written comment cited a specific technical risk—an overloaded contributing watershed and an undersized detention pond—which, if accurate, could cause downstream flooding during a major storm. Postponing gives staff and the applicant time to supply engineering clarifications or revisions before the Commission issues a recommendation to City Council.
The next procedural step is the rescheduled public hearing, when applicant-provided drainage details, any revised calculations, and potential conditions will return to the Commission for consideration. If the applicant corrects the engineering or proposes mitigation, staff and the Commission may take final action or forward recommendations to City Council.
