A controversial proposed ordinance that West Dallas residents say would limit one of their last options to shut down a decades-old shingle plant is one step closer to being approved.
Members of the city’s Zoning Ordinance Advisory Committee approved the drafted ordinance at Tuesday’s meeting — but with a caveat. The advisory group instructed the city attorney’s office to incorporate some protections of a residents' right to apply for right to file for a scheduled closure — or amortization — before it goes to the City Plan Commission.
The proposal is aimed at bringing city code into compliance with new state laws.
But West Dallas residents, environmental activists — and some committee members — say the proposal goes above and beyond what the new law has laid out.
West Dallas residents have been lobbying for almost two years for city council members to start the amortization process for the decades-old GAF shingle factory located along Singleton Boulevard.
They say the facility is polluting their air, harming their health and say city officials have been silent on the issue — to the detriment of their community.
City officials say they voted to approve the draft because there is “more that needs to happen” than the zoning advisory group can do right now.
This is the second time the committee has discussed the proposal. Previously, many West Dallas residents and environmental activists showed up to oppose the ordinance.
Janie Cisneros is the leader of Singleton United/Unidos — a group focused on clean air in West Dallas, starting with the closure of the GAF facility.
“You have power and you are voting on something that will affect the powerless,” Cisneros told committee members during the meeting. “I am sure within the walls of city hall there is chatter of Dallas striving to be a world-class city. But this is not what a world-class city does. This is not how a world-class city treats its people.”
‘The poison pill’
City staff say the proposed ordinance change was spurred by Senate Bill 929, which was signed into law earlier this year by Texas Governor Greg Abbott. The new law included what city attorneys are calling a “poison pill.”
The bill essentially allows the property or facility owner to pick two options when faced with amortization. Either stage the closure over time — which has been the city’s policy – or accept an immediate payment from the city and stop operations.
“The results of [SB 929] is that it puts the taxpayers at risk to parley a large amount of money — with no oversight from city council,” ” Assistant Interim Chief of Counsel Bertram Vandenberg said during the meeting.
Vandenberg says the goal of the legislation was to make it difficult for cities to deal with these types of issues at the municipal level. In fact, SB 929 is narrowly focused on Dallas — and the GAF shingle factory.
City attorneys also admitted that SB 929 did not change who could file for amortization. The city decided to remove that right on their own.
“Under what staff has proposed the city council will still be allowed to request a compliance hearing from the board of adjustment,” Vandenberg said. “And residents will still have the ability to go to city council meetings and sign up to speak and request their city council members to do so.”
Jim Schermbeck is the leader of Downwinders at Risk — a nearly 30-year-old advocacy group focused on clean air in the DFW area. He says simply going to the council is not enough.
“Anybody who seriously suggests to solve City of Dallas problems by approaching the five minute general speaking time at every city council meeting, has never tried to get anything from the…meeting before,” Schermbeck said. “That is obvious and it is not a serious proposal.”
And for West Dallas residents, attending every council meeting — which usually start at 9 a.m. and last well into the evening — is not a viable option.
The committee's vote comes after Cisneros was blocked twice by the city attorney’s office from filing for amortization. In addition, District 6 Council Member Omar Narvaez, who represents West Dallas, has said he is unable to speak with residents — or the media — about the issue.
KERA reached out previously for comment about the issue. He did not cite specific ethics codes or state laws that would preclude him from doing so.
What’s next
Now that the zoning committee has approved the drafted ordinance — the discussion moves on to the city’s plan committee.
That body oversees deciding recommendations for city permits and zoning. Some committee members emphasized the need for the city attorneys to find some way to protect residents’ right to file for amortization.
And they emphasized their efforts to hear out residents — and work on their behalf.
“This motion to move it to [City Plan Commission] does not preclude the opportunity for changes to be written into what we see right now,” District 8 Commissioner Lorie Blair said. “Trust me. I hear you; I know you because I am you.”
As the proposal stands now, the only way for residents to initiate the filing process for a scheduled closure is by lobbying a city council member — and hoping their call to action does not go unheard.
“Accepting this amendment entrenches Dallas to be a city that will always be divided,” Cisneros said. “This shows that the City of Dallas still has strong connections to its dark historic past.”
The plan commission is scheduled to discuss the proposal in early 2024. Until then, the GAF facility continues to churn out tons of toxic pollutants that carry a slew of potentially harmful — or even deadly — long-term health effects.
Got a tip? Email Nathan Collins at ncollins@kera.org. You can follow Nathan on Twitter @nathannotforyou.
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