08.01.07
County Gives Citizens Two Weeks to Review New Landfill Contract
AAS has the story, Residents can comment on the deal next week; commissioners will vote Aug. 14
Listen to this article or download audio file. The contract can be downloaded here. Judge Dan Gattis, Sr. says this contract is much better than the previous one, but..
The biggest difference between the two contracts is the length, he said. The current contract has no end date; the new one ends in 40 years.
The new contract also limits the area from which trash can be brought into the landfill to seven counties. Also, under the new deal, the total amount of trash each year cannot exceed how much the county produces. The current contract has no limit.
“I’m sure this is not a perfect contract,” Gattis said. “I’ve never seen one of those.”
The county split the difference between the 30 days citizens wanted to review the contract and the couple of days the county was willing to give before citizens groups started voicing their concerns. Mahlon Arnett takes a more measured tone than Judge Gattis.
Citizen groups had asked for the chance to look over the new contract for at least 30 days before commissioners vote on it, but Mahlon Arnett of the Hutto Citizens Group said that a two-week review period is better than nothing.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what they put in there and whether they still have (the contract) tied to the expansion or not,” Arnett said.
We’ll see, I’m sure if there are any serious issues the Hutto Citizens Group will let us know.