If Clark County is selected, the former Springfield City Landfill will join a growing number landfills statewide that are being turned into parks, golf courses, shopping centers and other businesses.
Developing a landfill, however, costs millions and in some cases can be a risky business venture if precautions are ignored and construction goes awry.
“You need to make sure your buildings are stable. You have to make sure you’re capturing explosive gases. If you haven’t done those things, then you can run into a bunch of trouble,” said Amy Alduino, Brownfield Coordinator for the Ohio Department of Development.
Interest in landfill commercial development has grown since the mid-2000s as land in urban areas became scarce, said Atul Pandey, president of Columbus-based Pandey Environmental.
His group conducted environmental studies on the Franklin County and Springfield City landfills for development.
The former Springfield Landfill, used as a city dump from 1971 to 1975, is a 38-acre landfill that contained solid waste material, presumed to be municipal and household wastes, according to Clark County Combined Health District records.
Approximately 179,400 cubic yards of waste had been distributed over 22 acres of the site and that waste material may range from less than a foot deep to 25 feet deep, the study said.
Developer Randy Dotto said the landfill is 38 acres, but if the county gets the grant, he could build on about 60 acres.
Dotto years ago proposed a $10 million travel center that would have included a truck stop with a buffet restaurant, grocery, motel and car wash.
There’s now potential for big-box retail stores, hotels, a strip mall, offices and dorms for Clark State, Dotto and economic development officials said.
“Total development could be in the hundreds of millions,” he said.
Before construction can begin, developers seeking cleanup funds must get approval from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio Department of Development.
The property must be assessed for contaminants, and developers must either remove or meet environmental standards to contain hazardous liquids and gases that can leak into the soil, groundwater, streams and affect nearby homes and businesses, Pandey said.
Monitoring for leaks must continue for 30 years, officials said.
ODD officials cite success stories such as the redevelopment of the Gowdy Field and Gahanna Bedford landfills in the Columbus-area.
The Time Warner Cable headquarters opened on Gowdy Field in 2007. Two Ohio State University Medical Center buildings are also on the site.
The former 88-acre Gahanna Bedford landfill is now the Golf Village at Central Park, a park, golf course and office campus.
Failures include the Cleveland-area’s City View Shopping Center, which opened in 2006 and was Ohio’s first major commercial development built on a landfill.
Developers were cited for multiple EPA violations after officials found explosive levels of methane beneath the parking lot and recorded other problems, including a methane fire.
The violations and disappointing sales caused retail stores such as Walmart and PetSmart to flee the complex. Other major stores that were supposed to move in backed out, and the shopping center went into receivership after the owner defaulted on an $81 million loan.
Pandey called the shopping center a study in how not to remediate a landfill.
When Pandey Environmental worked on Gowdy Park, “The approach we took is we have to have four or five layers of defense, and if this fails, then something else will kick in, so in essence there’s never going to be a failure such that people get affected by the landfill,” Pandey said.
If Clark County receives the state grant, the same safety measures will be done at the former Springfield Landfill, he said.
Pandey Environmental officials discovered methane gas and low levels of benzene, arsenic and other hazardous materials at the site recently.
Anne Kaup-Fett, an environmental health professional at Clark County Combined Health District, said she was not surprised by what was discovered on the landfill.
She said arsenic in groundwater can be naturally occurring, and gases are expected on landfills.
“It looks typical for an old landfill,” Kaup-Fett said.
She said contaminants should not deter developers from building on landfills and says development can be a success if precautions are taken.
“Everything has risks. There are plenty of possible problems. But what any business does is look at a property and weigh the risks,” Kaup-Fett said.
“Brownfields come with a set of risks, but they also come with an attractive location and an incentive to make money.”
Mike McDorman, president and CEO of the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce, and Commissioner John Detrick said they hope the area gets state funds to clean up the landfill.
Detrick said the county is competing with Piqua and Xenia for the grant. He said if Clark County is selected, the area could bring in millions in taxes.
“This would be the best investment the state of Ohio has ever made in the county,” Detrick said. “It’s the most developable intersection in the county because water and sewer are already present and the high traffic volume.”
McDorman said hotels in the area are at 70 percent capacity. “We need that type of facility. It would have a huge economic impact and add jobs to Springfield,” McDorman said.
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