SUBJECT: An Ordinance making findings related to the use or taking of 1,940 square feet (0.0445 acres) of the Bayou Greenways - Hall Access land by Houston Public Works to make proposed improvements to the FWSD#23 Wastewater Treatment Plant (“WWTP”).
RECOMMENDATION: (SUMMARY)
Approve an Ordinance making findings related to the use or taking of 1,940 square feet (0.0445 acres) of the Bayou Greenways - Hall Access land by Houston Public Works to make proposed improvements to the FWSD#23 Wastewater Treatment Plant (“WWTP”) by replacing the existing 48-inch gravity sewer and three-barrel siphon that conveys sewer flow from the north side of Park Site to the WWTP with a deep 60-inch gravity sewer crossing under the Park Site and connecting to a deep influent lift station at the WWTP that was built in 2017 (“Project”).
SPECIFIC EXPLANATION: The city acquired 1,940 square feet (0.0445 acres) of land (Parcel BY15-071) as part of Bayou Greenways, an integrated system of connected linear parks with walking, running and bicycle trails along the City’s major bayous. Houston Public Works has identified a need for the existing 48-inch wastewater line (WWL) and three-barrel siphon that conveys sewer flow from the north side of Halls Bayou be replaced with a deep 60-inch gravity sewer crossing under Halls Bayou and connecting to a deep influent lift station at the FWSD #23 Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) that was built in 2017. The new gravity sewer will be installed via Micro tunneling. In addition to the utility corridor, a staging area within the park property will be required for construction activities consisting of total area of 14,110 square feet (0.324 acres).
Section 26.001 of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Code provides that a city may not approve any program or project that requires the use or taking of land designated and used as park land unless, after notice and public hearing, its governing body determines that: (1) there is no feasible and prudent alternative to the use or taking of the park land, and (2) the program or project includes all reasonable planning to minimize harm to the park land.
Due to design specifications for the new wastewater line, there is no feasible and prudent alternative to the use of a portion of the park for the Project. Houston Public Works and the Parks and Recreation Department have worked together to ensure that the Project has a minimal impact on the park. The Project will not impair the function of Halls Bayou Greenway as a whole. When the Project is completed, the new water line will have minimal impact on the continued use of the surface of the Utility Corridor for park purposes.
Texas Parks and Wildlife Code Chapter 26 requires the City to publish three public notices and hold a public hearing prior to authorizing the use or taking of park land for non-park purposes. Notices were published in the Houston Chronicle on October 9, 2023, October 16, 2023, and October 23, 2023. City Council held a public hearing on the use of the park land on November 1, 2023.
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Kenneth Allen, Director
Houston Parks and Recreation Department
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Carol Ellinger Haddock, P.E., Director
Houston Public Works
WBS No. R-000265-131A-4