P.A. Watson Cemetery (also known as the West Fork Cemetery)
*Update* (February 10, 2015) We had to fix the link above since it was apparently taken down by the City of Arlington. We added a new one. If you click on the new one (above) the discussion is about a monument erected
Drilling and fracking so near this historical cemetery shows such disrespect for our past. AMEN.
Dateline Arlington, TX: We have seen it many times before. A church or another business entity owns a fairly large piece of undeveloped land inside City Limits. A shale gas operator finds it, makes a deal and...before we know it, everything is ready to go through the approval stages. The City does a little tap dance and all vote in unison for approval. Cities all across the Barnett Shale revere their shale gas deals.
And as we so often find in shale gasland...there can be many unknown potholes on the road to that promised land.
Follow the Yellow Brick Road
The Colony -- An investment group established by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, a meditation guru who once inspired the Beatles, is apparently hoping that a mixed-use development in The Colony will hasten its plan to establish "heaven on earth."[...]Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is credited with bringing transcendental meditation, or "TM," to the world in the 1960s. Transcendental meditation is a meditative technique in which a "mantra" is chanted that aims to nourish creativity and well-being. Today the yogi is said to have 4 million worldwide followers, a global network of meditation centers and universities, his own 24-hour TV channel in Holland and the Maharishi Global Development Fund, which is based in New York City. [emphasis added]
The clock is finally ticking for Hartford's 1960s-era Clarion Hotel, the 12-story eyesore in spooling white concrete worthy of an Eastern Bloc nation that sits in the way of hoped-for redevelopment of Constitution Plaza downtown.[...]Instead, exactly nothing happened for the past 15 years, resulting in the haggard, water-damaged wreck that today sits astride Kinsley Street on Columbus Boulevard. Hartford City Assessor Larry LaBarbera recently toured the inside of the building, with flashlights since there's no electricity, and describes it as "totally devastated."In 2003, the MGDF abandoned plans to build a mixed-use development on about 300 acres in The Colony, Texas, that would have included the world's tallest skyscraper, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Follow the Yellow Brick Road (keep going)
THE COLONY (CBSDFW.COM) - A theme park in The Colony? It could happen.The city council agenda for Tuesday night’s meeting lists a proposal for a “1.5 billion dollar” development for “a theme park, hotel, convention center, stores, concessions, restaurants and park facilities.”[...]Years ago, the Maharishi Global Development Fund wanted to build a 1,600 foot tower on the land.That skyscraper project never happened, and neither did a separate mixed-use development the group later proposed for the same location. The land is empty now.[emphasis added.]
The video starts after the ad ~ wait about 28 seconds:
We're Almost There
Budget Inn Suites in Grand Prairie, TX: Just a Few Feet from Proposed "Maharishi Pad Site"
Click Here to View the Arlington, TX City Council Agenda Details for the April 3, 2012 City Council Meeting (It's a very big file so be patient. Go to Pages 228 - 256 for the Marharishi Drill Site Agenda Details.) (New format created later for these files, apparently.)
(Pages 229-230)On March 16, 2012, the Community Development and Planning Department received a letter opposing the zoning case. As the owner’s signature represents only 7.9 percent of the land area within 200 feet of the subject site, approval of this case will not require super majority vote of the City Council.REQUESTThe applicant requests approval of a Specific Use Permit (SUP) for gas drilling on a 5.035-acre tract of land zoned Entertainment District-Industrial Manufacturing (ED-IM). The property is addressed at 601 Avenue H East; generally located north of Avenue H East and east of State Highway 360.ANALYSISThe subject site is currently undeveloped with frontage on Avenue H East. The City of Grand Prairie borders the north of the subject site, while there is undeveloped land to the east, office and *cemetery uses to the south, and office and gasoline retail uses to the west. The operator plans to drill 14 to 37 wells on the site. However, due to the fluctuating demand of natural gas and market prices, the applicant does not have an estimated timeframe of when drilling activities will be complete.[...]
(Page 231)
Pipeline Route
The applicant has identified a proposed pipeline from DFW Midstream that will serve the site. The line is an eight-inch Maharishi lateral that will connect to the future Great Southwest Parkway 16-inch lateral.
Enough already. Maharishi Global Development Fund is a non-profit organization with assets of $122,580,646 at the end of 2010.
*Watson/West Fork Cemetery, Arlington, TX and Historical Landmark
I sent this to the Maharishi foundation.
ReplyDeleteAre you aware that the city council in Arlington, TX is voting today to permit fracking for gas drilling at a site called the Maharishi drill site, named for Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Fracking poisons the land, the water, the air, and is dangerous to health and happiness. How can your organization participate in something so contrary to all your beliefs and poison a city in the process?
http://www.arlingtontx.gov/citycouncil/agendas/agenda_evening_040312_full.pdf
Start reading at page 228.
I heard back from them. Hilarious!
DeleteAs Director of the Transcendental Meditation® (TM) program in the United States, I’d like to thank you for your interest in the TM® technique and give you some introductory information in response to your request.
But first, let me give you contact information for the certified TM teacher nearest you:
...
Looks as if they referred the questions to the Customer Service Department. Must be a big corporation. :-)
DeleteAnd to clarify...the land for this shale gas site is owned by this "nonprofit" founded by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Hypocritical in the very least, when the Father of Transcendental Meditation was all about removing the stress from our lives. Stress-free fracking. Truth is much stranger than fiction when it comes to the shale gas saga.
DeleteExcellent job of sleuthing. Shocking!!!
ReplyDeleteBetcha they have already fracked and drilled under many other cemeteries in the Barnett Shale and elsewhere. Our state usually protects cemetery plots. At least they always did before shale gas. Thanks, TXSharon! Hope you were safe in the bad weather today.
DeleteThe industry has shown no respect for the living, so why should we be surprised that they have no regard for the dead.
ReplyDeleteA cemetery manager was explaining to me that the cemetery owns the first 18 inches, and they maintain the surface. The person who purchases the burial plot owns 18 inches to 6 feet. He said the cemetery doesn't usually own what's below that. Most likely whoever sold the land to the cemetery retained the minerals. He wants me to get back with him when I get the legal facts on this issue, and he did not sound pleased with the idea of fracking going on under people's graves.
According to a RRC employee who handles gas permitting, whoever owns the minerals can lease that land to the operator. (Keep in mind that the RRC's mission is to develop minerals.)
Something doesn't appear right with drilling under cemeteries. One would think there is a law protecting this sacred ground ~ but this is Texas ~ and Texas has deep roots and alot of pride when it comes to drilling.
So, what you are saying is that "minerals trump our historical landmarks." We know they trump everything else. Even though the earthquakes that might happen during or after drilling and fracking can very well destroy the headstones and historical markers.
ReplyDeleteSo much for "resting in peace." Amen.
USGS: Recent Earthquakes "Almost Certainly Manmade" ~
Report Implicates Oil and Natural Gas Drilling
When I find out definitively whether or not drilling under Texas cemeteries is allowed, I'll be sure and let you know. Everything about horizontal shale gas drilling is so experimental that our laws have not kept pace with this new technology.
ReplyDeleteEven if Newark does not intend to drill under this historic cemetery, who wants to look at an ugly drilling rig or dirty frac job in progress while paying their respects to deceased loved ones? I can just see all the truck traffic and dust flying.
Living 1,500 feet from a drill site and experiencing the nightmare, I had actually thought about purchasing a home next to a cemetery just to experience tranquility and peace, but with the shale gas boom taking over all areas, that may no longer be a viable option.