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Opponents of a planned subdivision in northwest Bexar County are applauding the decision of an independent counsel that recommended the denial of a permit for a water treatment plant.
The decision by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's Office of Public Interest Counsel creates a speed bump for Lennar Homes to build almost 3,000 homes on the planned Guajolote Ranch subdivision. Opponents said the development could risk the safety of the Edwards Aquifer.
Grey Forest Mayor Paul Garro said the decision is encouraging: “We thought it was a terrific win, and obviously we agree with their perspective that it should be denied. So it brought a little bit of hope to the work to this point, although the work’s not done.”
The independent counsel said the applicant has failed to show that the draft permit is sufficiently protective of water quality. If approved, the plant would dump as much as 1 million gallons of treated wastewater per day into Helotes Creek.
On Sunday, a bipartisan group of San Antonio-area state legislators toured the area that would be affected. The group included State Rep. Mark Dorazio, R-San Antonio, State Rep. John Lujan, R-San Antonio, aides for State Rep. Ray Lopez, D-San Antonio, State Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, and Precinct 3 County Commissioner Grant Moody. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg, who has stated his opposition to the project, also recently toured the area.
A three-day hearing was held in February during which the state Office of Administrative Hearings listened to testimony from representatives from the proposed wastewater treatment plant and attorneys for The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance, landowner Ann Topperwein and the City of Grey Forest, who were granted standing in the case.
The judicial recommendation will go to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s three-commissioner panel, which will render a final determination on the permit. That determination may be appealed, said Randy Neumann, chair of the steering committee of the Scenic Loop-Helotes Creek Alliance neighborhood group.
The environmental issues attached to Lennar Homes developments, including the proposed Guajolote development and another near Comfort, have gained international attention. Austrian Financial newspaper Boerse-Express recently published a report that indicates Lennar stock may be suffering from its problematic issues with proposed wastewater treatment plants.
Lennar Homes did not respond to TPR's request for comment.
