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HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 6926 INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 6926 ,,,prio,o DoE 40Rr,�o To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 27, 1984 Z5 ti...-a rPCX PROPOSED CONTRACT WITH WASTE MANAGEMENT, INC. Subject: 1613 The purpose of this report is to provide the City Council with a chrono- logy of the issues and events that are associated with Gateway Park and the "Eastside Landfill." The report also presents a recommendation for resolution of the situation, citing the major canponents of the proposed agreement in general terms. Background On January 3, 1973, the Zoning Board of Adjustment approved a 5-year special exception on the "AG" Agricultural zoned site at East First Street and Oakland Boulevard for operation of a sand and gravel and sanitary landfill. Near the end of this five-year period, in December, of 1977, the operator (not the current operator, Waste Management Inc. ) requested and was granted a special exception for an additional five years. As the second five-year period was nearing expiration, Waste Management Inc. sought another five-year exception. The Zoning Board of Adjustment denied this request on July 7, 1982, and stipulated that the landfill operations should be terminated no later than eighteen months fran the date of expiration of the previous special exception, the end of June, 1984. Proposal to Utilize Site as Park In August, 1982, representatives of Waste Management Inc. requested a meeting with the Fort Worth Park and Recreation Department. Several representatives of Waste Management Inc. and City staff attended. At the meeting, a Florida consultant retained by Waste Management Inc. presented preliminary plans showing haw the landfill site might be used as a park. The Park and Recreation staff explained the City's preliminary plans regarding the development of nearby Gateway Park. The participants also discussed the recreational needs of eastside Fort Worth citizens and identified specific facilities needed, such as tennis courts, ball diamonds, and soccer fields. On September 15, 1983, another meeting was held at the request of Waste Management. At this meeting, the company's representatives told the City staff that they had obtained an option to buy additional property along Oakland Boulevard. They inquired whether or not the Park and Recreation Department would be interested in expanding Gateway Park from the original site all the way to Oakland Boulevard, across the existing landfill. While the sector plan called for residential development in this area, the existence of the landfill operation made residential development unlikely. The Park and Recreation staff expressed sane interest in the idea but also expressed reservations based cn the difficulty and cost associated with shaping and contouring the landfill to make it compatible with the preliminary plans for Gateway Park. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER - FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 6926- Page 2 �I PTI q0 motSORlep To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 27, 1984 4 rfXPy Subject: PROPOSED CONTRACT WITH WASTE MANAGEMENr, INC. eT3 City's Response to Proposal The City's attitude toward expanding Gateway Park was further explored in a meeting on September 17, 1982 between Waste Management Inc., the Park and Recreation staff, and a representative of the City Manager's Office. The City staff specified two basic conditions to a possible agreement. First, Gateway Park would have to be developed in phases to provide certain recreational opportunities for the eastside residents within a short time frame. Second, adequate buffering would be needed if the park and landfill were to co-exist. Staff also requested that Waste Management's truck traffic along Oakland Boulevard be rerouted to East First Street. Following this meeting, the City received a letter from Waste Management Inc. summarizing the results of their discussions with the Streams and Valleys C mnittee and the Amon Carter Foundation. These organizations apparently had shown considerable interest in the concept of expanding Gateway Park to Oakland Boulevard. As a result of these meetings, the Amon Carter Foundation agreed to pay for a Master Plan to further study the proposal. The Master Plan would determine whether Gateway Park could be enhanced by expanding the original park property to include the additional land owned by the Carter Foundation and leased to Waste Management Inc. for landfill purposes. On May 6, 1983, the staff and Waste Management Inc. met again to conti- nue the park development discussion. For this meeting, the staff had prepared a preliminary list of considerations necessary to make the park project acceptable fran the City's perspective. The list presented to Waste Management Inc. included: 1. A grading plan to provide contours and landforms for the site, compatible with the preliminary plans for Gateway Park. 2. Phasing in improvements, so that eastside citizens could enjoy immediate use and benefits of at least sane recrea- tional facilities. 3. Buffering of Oakland and East First Street to protect the citizens' line of vision from landfill operations. 4. Excavation of a lake for Gateway Park on the west side of the river. 5. Release of the City from liability concerning subsurface materials placed in the landfill. 6. Tangible additions to the land (i.e. , development of certain park amenities) by Waste Management Inc. 7. Improvement of East First Street by Waste Management Inc. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 6926- Page 3 N 0,1(q,0 E�ORT To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 27, 1984 Z3 i �TExPy. Subject: PROPOSED CONTRACT WITH WASTE MANAGMENT, INC. Lei s B. Installation of a methane gas collection system if necessary. 9. Continued use of East First Street and Beach Street as the primary routes to and from the landfill. 10. A reduced tipping rate for the City if these facilities are used in the City' s own disposal program. 11. Closure of the landfill in a timely manner and in compliance with Environmental Protection Agency and State guidelines. 12. Donation of the landfill property to the City. As this list represented sizable additional expenses for Waste Management Inc., the canpany informed City staff they would need time to evaluate the feasibility of these conditions. Barriers to Forced Cessation of Landfill Operations ' On July 22, 1983, Waste Management Inc. asked for another meeting to discuss in greater detail sane of the items on the list of conditions. Waste Management Inc. did indicate that sane of the items cn the list simply were not feasible. The most significant event at this meeting, however, was a statement by Waste Management Inc. 's attorney that the company probably did not require City approval to continue landfill operations, at least not on that portion of the property which was unzoned. Pursuant to this information, the Department of Law was asked to research the attorney's claims and the City's legal position concerning this property. Fran informal discussions with the Department of Law, the City Manager staff draws the following conclusions: The property proposed to be included in Gateway Park is ocmprised of three tracts. One tract containing approximately 116 acres is owned by the Carter Foundation and is currently under lease to Waste Management, Inc. This lease expires sometime in 1987. The second tract is composed of 22 acres and also is owned by the Carter Foundation. The third tract contains approximately 30 acres, and Waste Management Inc. has an option to purchase this 30-acre tract from another party. Both the 22-acre and the 30-acre tracts currently are unzoned property. In addition, approximately 75 acres of the 116-acre tract are unzoned. The remaining portion of the 116-acre tract is zoned as "AG" Agricultural property. The current landfill operation is limited to the unzoned portion of the 116-acre tract. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 6926 - Page 4 ;V%NrP T(Hf0 March 27, 1984 uel'-x Ok , To the Mayor and Members of the City Council Subject: PROPOSED CONTRACT WITH WASTE MANAGEM Vr, INC. ,ei3 It is critical to understand that the 1982 special exception case (B/A-82-149) applied only to that portion of the landfill which was located in "AG" zoned property. The application requested special exception approval only on the "AG" portion, and the Board of Adjustment's minutes state that the special exception request was applicable on "AG" Agricultural property. However, the quick reference map which was attached to the zoning case indicates that the special exception use covered both zoned and unzoned property. Despite the contents of the map, it is staff's opinion that under State law, the Board of Adjustment has no jurisdiction over unzoned land. Neither does the City's Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance attempt to confer jurisdiction over unzoned land. Therefore, any attempt by the Board of Adjustment to grant or deny a special exception use on unzoned land would have no validity. In short, the Board's July 7, 1982, denial of an additional five-year exception has no impact on the legal operation of the landfill on the unzoned property. On the other hand, the "AG" zoned portion of the landfill must cease operation by June 30, 1984, according to the decision of the Board of Adjustment on July 7, 1982. At that time, if operations continue, the City of Fbrt Worth could issue citations for an illegal operation and violation of the zoning ordinance or could initiate injunctive action to prevent the operation of the landfill. As outlined above, the remaining unzoned portion of the landfill legally can continue operation after June 30, 1984. In fact, the landfill operation can be expanded onto the two smaller unzoned tracts which are not controlled under the City's Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance. As long as the property remains unzoned, any reasonable use may be made of it so long as that use does not constitute a nuisance. A landfill in full compliance with a State permit does not and would not constitute a nuisance. Based on these legal considerations, City staff recognized that the City's ability to control the landfill operation through the zoning process was questionable and could be subject to lengthly delays in court. Staff decided accordingly that the most reasonable course of action would be to specify terms and conditions acceptable to the City and to Waste Management Inc. which would, first, close out the landfill through contractual obligations, and secondly, provide the greatest recreational opportunities for the eastside citizens. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 6926 - Page 5 f ioar,�p To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 27, 1984 rExay� Subject: PROPOSED CONTRACT' WITH WASTE MANAGEMENT, INC. Continuing Discussion of Park Proposal Later in 1983, the Master Plan prepared by the consulting firm of Zion and Breen was released, and City staff and Waste Management Inc. met on November 9, 1983, to discuss the study. on this occasion, a member of the Streams and Valleys C unittee was also in attendance to support the concept of an expanded park at the landfill site. The company representative confirmed that the landforrms and contours called for in the Zion and Breen report could be provided by Waste Management Inc. Waste Management Inc. also discussed in greater detail their position regarding the list of considerations originally identified by City staff. Following this meeting, and recognizing the City's legal position with regard to the City's inability to control or regulate land uses where no zoning is in place, the staff acknowledged in a letter to Waste Management Inc. dated December 7, 1983, the endorsement of the Streams and Valleys Comnittee. The Executive Board of the Committee had formally adopted and recommended to the City that the Zion and Breen report be approved and that action be taken to implement this recommendation, and had made a similar recommendation to the Park and Recreation Advisory Board. The staff letter identified and clarified six general areas of concern which Waste Management Inc. would have to agree to: 1. Limiting by contract the duration of landfill operations to a maximum of five years beyond the June, 1984, date. 2. Assumption by Waste Management Inc. of full responsibility for closing out the landfill operation and assumption by Waste Management Inc. of full liability for this property for a period of twenty years. 3. A cash payment by Waste Management Inc. in the amount of $500,000 (terms negotiable) to develop recreational facilities on the property. 4. Construction by Waste Management Inc. at the earliest possible date of athletic fields and ball diamonds to provide recreational facilities for the use of eastside residents. 5. Negotiation of a tipping rate below the established rate for City crews utilizing the landfill during the remainder of its operating life. 6. Participation by Waste Management Inc. in the cost of f improvements to East First Street. L ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 6926 - Pag 6 March 27, 1984 DoE fORT�p To the Mayor and Members of the City Council •rfXAhr Subject: PROPOSED CONTRACT WITH VAS`PE MANAGEMENT, INC. Potential Resolution At a meeting held on February 9, 1984, to discuss a possible agreement, it was determined that a contract would be the appropriate legal ineehanism to define and protect the legal interests of all parties. The draft of this contract prepared by the attorney for Waste Management Inc. requires further stipulation of terms and conditions, and in order to fully implement the Zion and Breen plan, Waste Management Inc. may be directed to seek a limited extension of the exception for the zoned portion of the landfill site; the ccimpany probably will need to resume operations at that site for a short time to create the landforms and contours designed by Zion and Breen and desired by the City. It is staff's opinion that an acceptable contract can be negotiated. As mentioned above, the proposal has been endorsed strongly by the Streams and Valleys Committee, and the Park and Recreation Advisory Board unanimously approved the Zion and Breen plan on February 21, 1984. M & C C-8286 has been prepared and appears on the March 27, 1984, agenda. City Council approval of this M & C would authorize the City Manager to negotiate the details of the six general provisions identified above, and to execute a contract with Waste Management Inc. binding the City and Waste Management Inc. to these provisions. ********** Additional information on this matter will be provided upon request. Robert L. Herchert City Manager RLH:Jh ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS