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<br /> 35
<br /> RESOLUTION 1992- 155 R
<br /> A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
<br /> OF SAN MARCOS, TEXAS, EXPRESSING THE CITY'S
<br /> POSITION ON PROPOSED STATE LEGISLATION
<br /> PERTAINING TO THE PROTECTION OF THE SAN MARCOS
<br /> RIVER; AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
<br /> WHEREAS, the Texa.s River Protection Association has
<br />advised the City of its intent to introduce a bill in the
<br />73rd Texas Legislature pertaining to the protection of the
<br />San Marcos River; and,
<br /> WHEREAS, as a city government, we regard our duty to
<br />serve as stewards of the San Marcos River as one of our most
<br />important responsibilities; and,
<br /> WHEREAS, the San Marcos River flows from the heart of
<br />the City at San Marcos springs, the second largest springs in
<br />Texas and a source of the base flow of the Guadalupe River;
<br />and,
<br /> WHEREAS, the springs and river provide a complex
<br />biological habitat, including several endangered species, and
<br />offer a pristine beauty and water quality unparalüeled in our
<br />state; and,
<br /> WHEREAS, the City has taken many actions to preserve the
<br />San Marcos River by enacting ordinances which limit
<br />development along the river arid its tributaries and protect
<br />the river from erosion and contaminated run-off, including
<br />the San Marcos River Corridor Ordinance, the Flood Damage
<br />Prevention Ordinance, the Drainage and Erosion Control
<br />Ordinance, the Industrial Waste Ordinance, the Landscape and
<br />Buffering Ordinance, together with ordinances pertaining to
<br />the Edwards Aquifer, including the,Edwards Aquifer Protection
<br />Ordinance and a stringent User Drought Management Plan in
<br />order to protect springflow, and therefore the River, during
<br />periods of low rainfall; and,
<br /> WHEREAS, the two-plus miles of the river headwater
<br />segment which wind through our City are bordered by public
<br />and private parks, from Spring Lake at Aquarena Springs
<br />Resort to the University-owned Sewell Park to 150 acres of
<br />city-owned parks, and private parkland on the east side of
<br />Interstate Highway 35; and
<br /> WHEREAS, the City recently retired from development a
<br />nine-acre tract of commercially zoned land located at IH 35
<br />and the San Marcos River, made possible with grants from the
<br />Nature Conservancy, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department,
<br />and the San Marcos River Foundation; and,
<br /> WHEREAS, the San Marcos River may be the most studied
<br />and protected river in Texas, with the City, Southwest Texas
<br />State University, the Upper San Marcos Watershed Authority,
<br />Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the U.S. Fish and
<br />Wildlife Service, the Federal Emergency Management Agency,
<br />the Soil Conservation Service, the Texas Water Commission,
<br />the Texas Water Development Board, the Texas Department of
<br />Health, the Guadalupe Blanco River Authority, the Edwards
<br />Underground Water District, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
<br />and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency all monitoring
<br />and assessing the quality of the river on a continuing basis;
<br />and,
<br /> WHEREAS, as the immediate custodian of the upper reaches
<br />of the San Marcos River, the City has undertaken a number of
<br />projects to improve river quality, including acquiring and
<br />maintaining parkland along the river, and making an $8.5
<br />million investment to convert to surface water for our
<br />municipal water supply to reduce our dependence on the
<br />aquifer, and making a $2 million investment in a wastewater
<br />
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