By Rose Laudicina
Staff Writer
For 40 years, the Rogers Road community has heard promises of water and sewer hookups, and, instead, have been given trash, vermin and pungent odors.
At the Orange County Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday night, the board decided to do right where previous boards had failed and give what was promised to the community years ago.
The board voted unanimously to develop a plan to provide water and sewer hookups in the neighborhood and authorize the cleanup of illegal dumpsites in the community.
The commissioners also voted 5-1 not to pursue extending the life of the landfill and to declare an intent to close it in 2013. County solid-waste staff had determined that the life of the landfill could be extended until as late as 2018, with revenues from the extension reaching as much as $11.7 million.
“The town and county have always come with promises, but only trash has followed, not the promises,†said Robert Campbell, a leader in the Rogers-Eubanks community. “We are requesting tonight that you do the social-justice thing and that you do the right thing.â€
The Rogers Road community, which is situated behind the landfill, has asked for water and sewer hookups, money for a community center and the removal of illegal trash dumpsites.
In April, the board made a public commitment to take action and directed county staff to determine the cost of fulfilling these promises.
“It is hard to separate the landfill solid-waste issues from the Rogers Road discussion, both emotionally and financially,†said County Manager Frank Clifton.
Clifton explained that in order to provide water and sewer hookups to residents of the neighborhood, the county needs to determine if the money would come from solid-waste revenues, the general fund or both. He also urged commissioners to establish a partnership with Chapel Hill and Carrboro, who own property surrounding the landfill, so that funds could be drawn from multiple sources.
Community members argued that by keeping the landfill open, it would continue to negatively impact the Rogers Road neighborhood.
“We have a moral obligation to close this landfill now,†said Stan Cheren, a member of the Rogers-Eubanks Coalition. “The county’s toxic landfill has been operating for 40 years at the expense of the community,†he added, giving examples of decreasing real estate values and waste leaching into their drinking water.
Commissioner Valerie Foushee gave a passionate speech about how the community deserves help, despite costs, and the longer the county waits the more expensive it will be.
She encouraged the board to find a way to pay for hookups to the actual houses and not just to property lines, because many residents cannot afford the fee of $5,000 or more to connect.
“[S]aying that we will do [water hookups to property lines] is just like putting a sandwich a mile away from a hungry person and saying go get it. These people cannot afford to hook it up themselves,†she said.
Board members said they plan to extend an invitation to local municipalities to discuss Rogers Road and the closure of the landfill.