http://66.225.205.104/JR20110425.mp3
A meeting tonight in South Charlotte will give neighbors of the Foxhole Landfill a preview of big changes that may be in store. Mecklenburg County is preparing to spend millions of dollars expanding the dump for the possibility of taking household trash. When the Foxhole Landfill opened near Ballantyne in 2000, surrounding neighborhoods were none-too-thrilled. County officials appeased residents with a pledge that the dump would never be a first choice for the region's stinky household trash. Only construction and demolition debris is currently sent to Foxhole, but that may soon change. The county has agreed to spend up to $15 million expanding Foxhole so it's ready for household waste. County Land Use and Environmental Services director Cary Saul says that's not a breach of the promise to residents. "We've had the option to use that landfill for the last 11 years, but our deal is we will work to find alternatives for residential waste," says Saul. "Right now we have no concrete alternatives come July 1, 2012." Saul is referring to the date when the county's current trash contract expires with a landfill near Charlotte Motor Speedway. County officials are hoping they'll have another option worked out by then, but they need Foxhole ready, just in case. The county's main alternatives are to sign a new contract with the speedway landfill or pay a private project called ReVenture to burn the trash and turn it into electricity. The ReVenture project has run into delays getting approval from local officials. If the trash does end up at Foxhole, Saul says people in the upscale residential neighborhoods near the landfill would not be bombarded with stench, but they would certainly notice a difference in the quantity of waste and number of vehicles entering the site. Residents will find out just how much change they could expect when the Foxhole Landfill Advisory Council meets tonight at 7 p.m. at Elon Park Elementary.