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June 22, 2012

Trash hauler wants decision tossed

By Felicia A. Petro/Senior Reporter Allied News

LIBERTY — Tri-County Industries believes a decision by Liberty Township supervisors regarding its proposed landfill is garbage - and the trash hauler is asking a Mercer County judge to throw it out.

Last month, supervisors Ron Faull and Bob Pebbles accepted changes made to a document they - and former member Chuck Larish - voted on last November to approve the reopening of Tri-County landfill.

The decision came after six months of hearings between Tri-County and Liberty supervisors over a year ago. Pine Township supervisors were also part of those hearings, as Tri-County wanted a permit to operate in Pine.

Tri-County's old landfill, closed for decades, would mainly be situated in Liberty Township. The site operating as a transfer station now in Pine, Liberty and Springfield townships is accessed from Route 208, east of the outlet mall, hotels and airport.

Pebbles and Larish stated that approving the landfill in Liberty would be contingent on the trash mound not exceeding 40 feet tall, because they say it would be considered a "structure" at the 150 feet the company has proposed. Liberty does not allow structures to be more than 40 feet, according to its zoning ordinance. Faull did not agree on the structure issue for Tri-County.

Nor did the family-run business, which appealed the decision in December to county President Judge Thomas R. Dobson, who asked the supervisors in March to clarify their position by submitting a supplementary/explanatory findings of fact.

Faull and Pebbles approved a supplement drawn up by their legal counsel in May. It indexed paragraphs in the original November document and supplemental dockets, along with a brief explanation of what they contain for Dobson to use as an easy reference.

The document also listed Larish as being one of the original supervisors who voted on the conditional use for the landfill in November. Tri-County's attorneys had 20 days to amend its appeal to Dobson after Liberty submitted its findings of fact.

In a document dated June 1, it stated that the new findings of fact were considered a new decision of the board; therefore, only two members made a decision since Tony Sunseri, who replaced Larish, recused himself.

Since Faull and Pebbles disagreed on the 40-foot structure issue, Tri-County felt that the findings of fact were a wash - and without a determination, it was "not effective as a condition." Furthermore, "No substantial evidence supports the imposition of a 40-foot height limitation," it added. And, "The imposition of a 40-foot height limitation constitutes an error of law."

Members of the Citizens Environmental Association of the Slippery Rock Area were afraid this could happen. The Tri-County watchdog group was also advised that six months worth of hearings could end up being repeated.

They and others objected to Tri-County's assertion with a document submitted to the court on June 8:

"Tri-County misapprehended the nature of the Liberty Township Board of Supervisors' May 14, 2012 supplementary/explanatory findings. The determination that the landfill was a structure was actually made in the board of supervisors' November 20, 2011 decision. The decision was made by a three-member board, with two of the three members determining that a landfill was a structure within the meaning of the ordinance. The board of supervisors reached a determination by a two-to-one vote, and the November 20, 2011 decision is the decision of record, supplemented by the board at the order of the court."

Dobson will hear arguments by both sides in September.

Published June 13, 2012, in Allied News. Pick up a copy at 201 A Erie St., Grove City.

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