The landfill, which is owned by Waste Management, asked to change 29 acres south of the facility to light industrial from suburban residential to excavate soil and dirt for trash cover.
The request was strongly opposed by some area residents, who said the facility has hurt home values and is ugly, smelly and causes pollution.
But their primary complaint was that the landfill should have closed years ago, but has been allowed to expand multiple times and will remain open for years to come.
Dayton Plan Board Members said they could not support the landfill’s request because they are concerned about the negative impact on neighbors and they are worried about the facility’s future expansion.
“I cannot vote in favor of this,” said David Bohardt, a board member. “I would like to see more evidence of corporate engagement with residents.”
Stony Hollow Landfill asked the city to rezone 29 acres of property it owns south of the landfill to use as a soil borrow area.
The landfill needs soil and dirt to cover waste at each state of disposal process. There is daily, intermediate and final cover.
The landfill excavates some soil on site, but that supply is running low and the facility is shipping in cover from other areas. On average, about 10 to 15 trucks each day bring in soil.
The 29-acre site would provide enough soil cover to last up to six years, depending on trash volumes at the landfill, said Peter Lucas, district engineer for the landfill.
The soil borrow was not expected to significantly increase noise levels, and it would eliminate the need to truck in soil, which resulted in heavy-vehicle traffic, he said.
City of Dayton staff recommended approval of the project, and the West Priority Land Use Committee voted for its approval.
Stony Hollow Landfill first received the Ohio Environmental Agency’s permit to install in 1995 and the facility began accepting solid waste for disposal in 1996.
Based on waste volumes, the facility was expected to fill up and close after about 11 years.
But waste volumes dropped and landfilling techniques improved and the facility kept operating.
In 2008, the landfill received permission from the Ohio EPA to expand laterally, which increased its waste capacity.
Last year, the landfill received permission to expand vertically, which again increased its disposal capacity. Without the expansion, the landfill would have had to close in a few years.
Now, it has about 16 to 18 years of capacity, according to company officials.
Edna Drew, 85, who lives less than two miles from the facility on Cain Court, said the city and county have put a variety of undesirable facilities in her west Dayton neighborhood, including the landfill, a prison, a homeless shelter, a pre-release center and TV antennas.
“It’s environmental racism,” she said.
She said this project would help the landfill expand in the future. She said the landfill has dragged down property values and causes a bad smell and fills the roads with dirt and mud.
Janice McCurdy, who has lived at 3740 Stony Hollow Road since 1989, can see the landfill from her front yard.
She said she offered to sell her home to Waste Management because she is sick of living near an ugly, growing mound of dirt. But, she said, the company was not interested in buying.
She said Waste Management owns the land north and east of her. She told the Plan Board she feared the landfill or its soil borrow operations would inevitably continue growing and surround her property.
Board member Bohardt said he’s concerned about what would happen once Stony Hollow ran out of soil in about six years.
Bohardt said he wants the city to have a conversation with the landfill about its plans for acquiring soil for its future needs.
He said he’s sensitive to the complaints of residents because many unwanted facilities were placed in west Dayton.
“I don’t have a suggestion for what should be done next, but I certainly don’t feel comfortable with proceeding,” he said.
Board member Richard Wright said some members of the community have lost trust because they expected the landfill to fill up and close.
He said the community should have been more involved in the decision-making process and made aware of what to expect from the proposal.
Landfill officials said they do not know what they will do next.
“We’ll have to go back and think about it,” said Lucas.
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