SUGAR LAND — Nearly 300 Fort Bend County residents packed the atrium of the Houston Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land to make one message resoundingly clear: They do not want a natural gas power plant in their community. 

The tense meeting, organized and moderated by the Telfair Homeowners Association, was part of what Mayor Joe Zimmerman called a “listening tour” to understand the concerns of the community. Residents filled rows of chairs and lined the perimeter of the room until officials determined the space was at capacity. About 50 people were not let into the building. 

Many took the opportunity to ask their most pressing questions and express their fierce opposition to the project, a $146 million rapid-start natural gas plant. The city said the plant will provide “clean and sustainable” power to support the Texas energy grid. 

The plant, if completed, will be located on 8 acres west of the Sugar Land Regional Airport. The land is on a 100-acre planned industrial park that formerly housed the Central Prison Unit, which closed in 2011. 

Several residents who asked questions identified themselves as doctors or experts on the impacts of emissions from natural gas. Many people addressed the mayor to express why the plant would not be a good fit for Sugar Land. Some even pushed for the plant to be subject to a vote to give an opportunity for residents to weigh in on a project some felt they were left out of. 

“Since you had several town hall meetings on this issue, and you (and) the city council members, everyone knows the residents don’t want this. So why don’t you just stop this?” longtime resident Thurgood Johnson asked. 

The question prompted cheers from the crowd and a resounding chant of “Stop This!” 

Once the chanting began, Zimmerman, council members, and the city’s spokesman walked out of the meeting. 

“I warned you when we started. We’re going to do it, and we’re going to be respectful. I’m not going to tolerate people yelling at us. We’re done, and we’ll schedule another meeting another time,” Zimmerman said. 

The city of Sugar Land’s spokesman, Doug Adolf, said the meeting ended once it became clear that the structure of the meeting became “difficult” to control. 

As city officials were escorted out of the building by police officers, the room erupted in frustration. Some were shouting “Shame on you!” and booing as they exited. 

Adolf said that city leadership was only scheduled to be there for an hour but ended up staying an additional 30 minutes. 

“I think that the mayor was very patient and answered all of the questions that he could. Clearly some answers just don’t exist yet, because we’re early in that process,” Adolf said. 

Others, however, expressed disappointment to see the mayor leave the meeting prematurely. 

“Seeing the mayor walk out like that is reflective of the fact that Sugar Land doesn’t care about the residents. They care about making a profit. They’re in profit-making business,” Johnson said. 

Status of proposed plant 

On May 21, Sugar Land city council approved a ground lease to the developer Wärtsilä Development and Financials Services Inc., a Finnish company with offices in Houston. 

This lease allows the developer access to the land to conduct all necessary surveys before determining a path forward. There are currently no votes planned until after this step is completed.

According to the city, the plant will only run 30-35 percent of the time and provide at least 100 megawatts of power. 

Zimmerman said the city and the developer have not finalized any contract negotiations yet. But when they are final, the city expects to get first rights of refusal to the power from the plant. 

Some residents expressed skepticism during the meeting. 

“That isn’t possible!” some residents shouted. 

In June, the developer applied for funding through the Texas Energy Fund, which provides low-interest loans to build natural gas power plants to support the Texas grid. Last week, the Houston Chronicle reported that the Sugar Land project was not selected for funding. Dozens of residents wrote to the Texas Public Utility Commission opposing funding for the project. 

The next chance for funding is in January. But Zimmerman said the developer will have to decide how to proceed since they were not selected for funding. 

“They’re going to have to make a decision whether they think they’ve got a reasonable chance of getting in the second round of funding or a future round of funding,”he said. “Or, do they just cut it off now?” 

The city said that they are considering a revenue-share agreement to reinvest in infrastructure, maintenance and economic development opportunities. However, the city will not use public tax dollars to fund the project, Zimmerman said. 

Residents push for answers 

Residents expressed concerns over the transparency of the process, the lack of pursuit of other energy options and the desire for more community input. 

When asked why the decision to pursue the power plant project wasn’t on the ballot for an election, Zimmerman referenced low voter turnout. 

“You elected us to be your representatives,” he said. “Has this council, or any other council ever made a decision that was not in the best interest of the City of Sugar Land?”

Many residents, like Ram Mulam, said they were attracted to Sugar Land because of what the school system could provide their kids. 

“You said that you made this decision because we elected you. We elected you to make sensible decisions,” Mulam said. “What assurances will the city of Sugar Land give… five years, 10 years, 20 years down the road that our children and our environment will be safe?” 

Dr. Kumud Patel, a Sugar Land resident since 2004, said that no matter who is in office, the community will make their opposition to the plant clear. 

“I know your term may be coming up for renewal, but whoever comes 30 years, 20 years from now, we do not want a power plant of any type,” she said to the mayor. 

Many questions from residents went unanswered by Zimmerman. He often referenced the project being in the early stages and reiterated they were waiting for results from the feasibility study. He said that any questions they could answer would be given to their team and posted on the city’s website. 

Anna Lykoudis-Zafiris, one of the main and most vocal leader of a local grassroots organization called Stop Sugar Land Gas Power Plant, expressed a desire for more transparency from city leaders going forward.

“The lack of transparency, it raises eyebrows as to the intent,” she said. “And again, it all comes back to what I always tell my kids. Money is the root of all evil, if you always go back to any problem, and most of the time has to deal with money. So that’s what the city’s interest is, profits over people.” 

Adolf disagreed, saying that the main goal of the project is to strengthen the energy grid in the region. 

“Our residents have told us — and they’ve told us clear and decisively — that something needs to be done to address the instability of power for our area,” Adolf said.

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