Monday, August 16, 1999
Residents object to landfill project
They say dust, noise, truck traffic too much for two-lane Gray Road
BY ERIN GIBSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Diane and Bobby Mushaben of Winton Place stand Thursday next to a backyard fence that separates their property from the Gray Road landfill.
(Yoni Pozner photos)
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A landfill owner's proposed “civic duty project” to haul more dirt from his dump in Winton Hills has dumbfounded neighbors living on the dusty Gray Road truck route.
“The truck traffic is inappropriate for a street like this,” said Gray Road landfill neighbor Diane Mushaben. “The noise is horrendous.” Neighbors fear more of it if owner Roy Schweitzer gets a city permit enabling a two-part project that involves:
• Cutting into 17 acres of hillside on his property to make way for an industrial park.
• Increasing the number of trucks used to haul excavated dirt to the nearby ELDA dump, also in Winton Hills, where it will cap off the now-defunct site.
Mr. Schweitzer said the permit would allow him to bring economic activity to Winton Hills.
Neighbors, however, want the city to deny the permit, saying more trucks will tear away their two-lane, residential road. Neighbors said 45 homes and at least three dozen apartments are affected. They will discuss the landfill's permit application at a public hearing with city council Tuesday.
If granted, the permit — called a cut-and-fill permit — would allow Mr. Schweitzer to remove dirt and haul in debris on 17 acres. His landfill, which accepts construction and demolition debris, covers about 37 of his 86-acre site.
Mr. Schweitzer said the number of trucks carrying dirt from the landfill would increase if the permit is granted, but he wouldn't accept more trucks bringing debris. He doesn't plan to fill the 17 acres, he said.
The dump's history makes neighbors and city officials wary.
A year ago, a buildup of potentially explosive methane gas had Cincinnati Board of Health members wanting the landfill to be fined or temporarily closed. State regulations did not support such punishment, and Mr. Schweitzer pledged to clean up the problem.
Dennis Drake, who lives on Gray Road, said other problems exist.
Only a fourth of the trucks are covered by tarps, Mr. Drake said, and chunks of concrete, drywall and bricks fall on the road, including one he measured at 4 feet by 6 feet.
Neighbors hear the crashing metal-on-metal sound of trucks bouncing over bumps in the road starting at 4:30 a.m., Mrs. Mushaben said.
In midday during the week, a truck passes each minute, she said. Dust from debris layers Gray Road.
“You can't leave your front windows open,” Mr. Drake said. “If you do, you'll have a house full of dirt.”
Cincinnati City Councilman Todd Portune said one possible solution is for truck traffic to be rerouted from Gray Road onto four-lane Winton Road — a move Mr. Schweitzer supports.
If traffic is rerouted, Mr. Drake said, he would continue to oppose the dump's new 17-acre operation to protect the land there.
Mr. Schweitzer said he does not understand why neighbors oppose a project that could bring an important industrial park to Winton Hills.
“All we're doing is taking out dirt,” Mr. Schweitzer said. “We're definitely not expanding the landfill.
“Even to this day, I'm not certain what everyone's so wrapped up about.”
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