City, KEDC will meet together Thursday

Kilgore City Commission and directors of Kilgore Economic Development Corporation (KEDC) will meet in a special joint meeting Thursday to discuss soil problems at the Alcoa/CSI site.

The meeting begins at city hall at 4:30 p.m.

Further problems with unstable soil at the Alcoa/CSI site have been uncovered and must be addressed, according to Jeff Howell, city manager.

In addition, city commissioners and KEDC board members will hear from Fred Gough. He contends KEDC does not have the right to use sale tax money to clean up a contaminated site.

Agendas for both groups are very similar. Both provide time for public comments from citizens wishing to address the board.

Both also call for discussion and possible approval of a proposed payment to remove contaminated dirt from a 9.22-acre site being developed for Alcoa/CSI by Scannell Properties in Kilgore Industrial Park.

Since KEDC is a city agency and not authorized to take independent action, city commissioners must approve minutes of KEDC’s meetings prior to actions being taken.

Gough contends it’s against the law for an economic development corporation to use sales tax money to remove contaminated dirt from a site, while KEDC maintains it’s within its parameters to clean-up a site for a designated client, if it’s for a specific economic development project.

Both Gough and KEDC Executive Director Amanda Nobles have quoted parts of the Development Corporation Act of 1979 as proof of their positions.

The issue could all boil down to a matter of semantics or how the law is interpreted or could go further.

However, Gough is on both of Thursday’s agendas to discuss his views on the expenditure of KEDC funds for the Alcoa/CSI expansion site.

Commissioners are also expected to conduct a joint discussion with the KEDC board regarding this expenditure for additional excavation and soil stabilization at the location and to consider approval of the Nov. 8 KEDC board minutes.

KEDC directors are expected to consider approval of an expenditure of up to $300,000 for additional excavation and soil stabilization on Lot 6 of Kilgore Industrial Park for Alcoa Closure Systems International and Scannell Properties, LLC.

City Manager Jeff Howell said additional soil at the 9.22acre site has been “found not to be conducive to building on and we need to bring in select fill (dirt) that will allow for a stable foundation.”

Howell said the soil located at the site now won’t compact well.

“We called the special meetings because we felt it is necessary to look at the additional expenditures and push forward with this project,” Howell said. “We don’t want to shut the door on this project and the contractors are on a tight schedule.

However, Gough is on both Thursday’s agendas to discuss his views on the expenditure of KEDC funds for the Alcoa/CSI expansion site.