HOUSTON — A plan devised to help people move out of an area of Houston known to be a hot spot for cancer cases was placed on hold.
The area, which is owned by Union Pacific, is along Liberty Road. The site used to be a creosote plant.
Last year, the health department found highly toxic chemicals in soil samples taken from the area.
In July, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner created a strike team to work on a program to help people move if they wanted.
The city set aside $5 million as seed money for the relocation program but it was tagged by Letitia Plummer, which put the money on hold until the next City Council meeting.
Turner said moving would be voluntary and the $5 million would have been able to help people living within two or three blocks of the site.