{"id":1807,"date":"2018-04-11T08:21:26","date_gmt":"2018-04-11T13:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=1807"},"modified":"2018-04-11T08:21:26","modified_gmt":"2018-04-11T13:21:26","slug":"talking-truth-about-the-farmers-branch-creek-dispute-part-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=1807","title":{"rendered":"Talking TRUTH About The Farmers Branch Creek Dispute PART 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

Talking TRUTH About The<\/strong>
\nFarmers Branch Creek Dispute<\/strong>
\nPART 2<\/strong>
\nBy Susan M. Halpern<\/strong>
\nFormer Addison Councilmember (1992-1999)<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I acknowledge blogs by the Farmers Branch mayor and one councilmember, attacking my prior article about the Farmers Branch creek dispute. It\u2019s unfortunate to see this type of rhetoric, as it clearly doesn\u2019t advance either town towards a resolution.\u00a0 Yes, Addison and Farmers Branch were right there at a resolution, and we can probably all agree that Addison\u2019s ex-mayor missed a great chance to resolve the matter by acting unwisely.\u00a0 But then, Addison\u2019s ex-mayor did a lot of things that were unconstructive, and Addison is doing its best to move forward.\u00a0 More to the point, the current challenge remains how Farmers Branch and Addison repair their relationship, if that is a goal.\u00a0 I believe and certainly hope it is for Addison.<\/p>\n

A few comments here about the statements made in the blogs. First, the TCEQ did indeed tell Addison that Addison could drill into the Woodbine Aquifer and that it did not have to amend its permit to do so.\u00a0 And, while the identity of the TCEQ employee who gave that direction is unknown (at least to me), the TCEQ has been very clear in acknowledging that this did indeed happen.\u00a0 The TCEQ\u2019s December 19, 2014 letter to Addison acknowledges it, stating: \u201cUnfortunately, this response was not correct.\u201d\u00a0 And, according to the Dallas Morning News\u2019 recent article, the TCEQ\u2019s spokesperson confirmed \u201cthat TCEQ permitting staff had provided Addison with wrong information that led Addison to believe it could use the Woodbine Aquifer instead of the Trinity Aquifer without amending its water use permit.\u201d\u00a0 So, let\u2019s not pretend that it didn\u2019t happen.\u00a0 And, let\u2019s not pretend that the fact that it DID happen isn\u2019t grossly unfair to Addison.<\/p>\n

I also don\u2019t believe the facts support a narrative that Addison never intended to drill into the Trinity Aquifer. For one thing, the permit application reflects exactly that, including because Addison\u2019s original intent was to use groundwater to irrigate the landscaping.\u00a0 After the application was submitted, Addison changed its plans and decided not to use groundwater to irrigate the landscaping.\u00a0 It was at this point that Addison asked to drill into the Woodbine Aquifer.\u00a0 So, the notion that Addison \u201cnever intended\u201d to drill into the Trinity Aquifer is simply unsupported.\u00a0 But more to the point, how does ascribing nefarious motives to such matters \u2013 without factual support \u2013 advance the ball for anyone?<\/p>\n

Regarding water quality, the key is what is being sent downstream, not what the water looks like before that point. So, citing tests that compare the water as between the two aquifers isn\u2019t the answer, because the water drawn from the aquifer mixes with the water that comes in on the east side.\u00a0 It also sits in the Vitruvian pond, and thereby settles out silt and sediment.\u00a0 And, the fact remains that the water that is being returned along the southern border on the west side of Vitruvian is of better quality than the water Addison takes in from Farmers Branch on the east side of Vitruvian.\u00a0 Again, from the Dallas Morning News article, quoting the TCEQ spokesperson: \u201cOtero said drilling into the Woodbine Aquifer had not caused any contamination to the Farmers Branch Creek.\u201d\u00a0 So, I stand by my challenge to the statement that Addison is polluting the creek despite an \u201cofficial ruling.\u201d\u00a0 Neither is true.<\/p>\n

To my knowledge, Addison has never denied that construction began too soon. There isn\u2019t a thing anyone can do to change those facts.\u00a0 Addison will have to pay the proverbial piper.\u00a0 My further understanding is that the riparian buffer is part of the permit amendment process.\u00a0 What is present complies with the 404 permit that was previously obtained from the Army Corps of Engineers.\u00a0 But then, the riparian buffer was never an issue until, well\u2026 until it became expedient to find issues.<\/p>\n

As to the canceled agreements, I decline to accept the characterization of Addison as a freeloading neighbor to whom much kindness and charity was extended. The fact is that the referenced relationships were negotiated and were the subject of contractual agreements that reflected a spirit of mutual cooperation between neighbors.\u00a0 Nonetheless, it is worth noting that Addison paid $200 per Farmers Branch library card issued.\u00a0 Addison also paid for half of the freezer into which the dead animals were put.\u00a0 Further, Addison was paying in connection with the referenced sewer line, even in the absence of a meter.\u00a0 And, while Farmers Branch has generously opened its senior center to Addison residents for a fee of $15 per year, the fact is that Farmers Branch offered the same arrangement to ALL non-residents.\u00a0 At least until now.\u00a0 Now, the fee to Addison residents is $500, even as it presumably remains $15 for all other non-residents. Characterizing all this as a one-way street is simply not appropriate, nor is it helpful on many levels.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the point: these longstanding interlocal agreements were not terminated because of perceived financial hardship to Farmers Branch. They were terminated because of the creek dispute.\u00a0 Farmers Branch is trying to gain leverage by exerting political pressure on Addison and its council.\u00a0 Period.\u00a0 And that\u2019s mighty distasteful and certainly not neighborly.\u00a0 Most importantly, in my humble opinion, these actions don\u2019t bring the two towns any closer to a resolution.<\/p>\n

It seems obvious that the issues regarding the creek need to be resolved. But 35 years of practicing law have taught me that drawing lines in the sand doesn\u2019t help anything.\u00a0 And 7 years of service on Addison\u2019s council taught me that riling everyone up doesn\u2019t help anything either.\u00a0 Farmers Branch is frustrated, and so is Addison.\u00a0 That\u2019s understandable.\u00a0 But we can\u2019t lose sight of the fact that we are neighbors, and we are better together than we are separately.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time for everyone to take a step back. It\u2019s time to bring Addison and Farmers Branch together again for a reasoned discussion and another attempt at a resolution, using a skilled, seasoned mediator.\u00a0 Many of us agree that our ex-mayor took this in an unhelpful direction.\u00a0 But we are where we are, and it\u2019s in everyone\u2019s interest to get this resolved and return our communities to their peaceable co-existence and a state of cooperation.<\/p>\n

That is the Addison Way. I hope it is also the Farmers Branch Way.<\/p>\n

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