Following two earthquakes and a boatload of violations EnerVest, LLC appeared before the Arlington Planning and Zoning Commission to request an amendment to a Special Use Permit to establish the drill zone at the Perr Drill Site. Their plan was to drill at least three more gas wells on an existing site in the heart of Arlington on the heavily traveled Cooper Street between the UTA campus and the widely visited Parks Shopping Mall.
The motion was DENIED.
Both the Chairman and Vice Chairman voted in opposition to EnerVest's request.
Here's the video of the September 17, 2015 public hearing for the Perr Drill Site:
On January 22, 2013
Lynda Gearheart, Project Manager for Chesapeake, told the Arlington,TX
City Council that security cameras are difficult to come by. Installation of a camera was one stipulation for approval of a gas well permit at the controversial Rocking Horse Drill Site. Click Here for that backstory.
In this video clip from January 22, 2013 City Councilmen Charlie Parker and Robert Rivera question Ms. Gearheart about that security camera:
Below is a document obtained by a citizen via an open records request through the City of Arlington. These are gas drilling citations that were issued in the spring of 2014. Security
cameras must be in short supply because more than 18 months have passed and ~ as these citations reveal ~
many of their drill sites still do not have cameras! When we called the City for a status update, they
said that Chesapeake is working on it. Come on, guys, time's up!
What would Minnie the Meter Maid say about issuing gas drilling violations on parking tickets?
Darlene (Sunnie) Minney Hubbard
Photo Attribution Grand Prairie Historical Organization
Arlington treats gas drilling violations no differently
than expired parking meters! Perhaps they want us to believe that gas drilling in residential neighborhoods is innocuous. Well, we know better. These are dangerous
industrial mining sites in our neighborhoods ~ not bakeries! We live near them, experience the impacts, and study the issues.
Notice that the company names are left off every citation. Is this intentional? Throwing workers under the bus. Glenn Stetson's name appears on many of these citations. He is a Production Superintendent for Chesapeake. This seems unfair because after the third offense, this civil citation turns into a criminal matter. It just wouldn't be right to press charges against a young newlywed when it is the City's responsibility to enforce the ordinance AND the company's responsibility to comply with it.
Curiously, the names of the drill sites are not listed on the citations either. Where's the transparency? If you wish to obtain records for a particular gas drill site, you must ask specifically by address or else no records will turn up. The City may charge for the records, but there is no charge for our tip!
We would like to point out that the last ticket in the bundle belongs to Atlas Resource Partners who acquired Titan Operating, LLC. They have an interest in 12,000 oil and gas wells with assets of $200 million.
They paid their fine.
If an Arlington meter maid ever issues you a parking ticket, here's how you can look up the amount of your fine. (A city employee taught us how to do this.) Let's practice by looking up the aforementioned code for the gas drilling violation since both are handled exactly the same way: 1) Go to the City of Arlington's new website: We've provided the link.
2) At the top right-hand side of the page click on the green tab that says
Pay Online
3) Now scroll down the page until you see a grouping of 8 large boxes. Click on the blue box with a picture of a police officer that says
"PAY Traffic Ticket."
4) On the left hand side of the page is a heading that says, "Fine Amounts."
Select "Civil Fines."
5) You will now see a 13-page listing of Civil Offenses. Code 5655 is on page 10. The offense for this code is "Misc. Violation Flammable or Combustible Liquids - IFC Chapter 34."
The Penalty for each offense is $130.
As of Friday, July 25, 2014 Chesapeake has NOT PAID any of these tickets.
A civil hearing is scheduled for September 24th at 2:00 p.m at the Arlington Municipal Courthouse. Anyone who wishes to attend this hearing must check in by 8:00 a.m.
If you are seeking an exciting new career as a meter maid, here is salary information:
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