Claremont
The proposal was presented by D.B. Kazee, an investor with the group that was the high bidder at a recent auction and has an option to buy the shuttered waste incinerator on Grissom Lane for about $575,000.
Kazee told the council and some skeptical members of the public that under no circumstances would his company restart the incinerator, which has been closed in September 2013 after operating for 26 years.
He described two potential operations at the property. The first would be a “recycling center” for industrial equipment, usually acquired from defunct businesses, to be refurbished and resold.
The second activity — gasification — takes municipal solid waste, yard waste and biomass material and processes it at a “very low temp” to produce a gas or steam to generate electricity that could be used to power the recycling center business, Kazee said. Excess electricity could be sold back to the grid.
“We think it is the only viable use you are going to find for the Wheelabrator property,” Kazee said. “We think it would benefit the city and provide new employment.”
Gasification, he said, does not alter the state of the material and said the “end product,” including metal and glass, is useable.
“There is nothing that goes to a landfill,” Kazee said.
All the accepted waste would be “vetted” before it went through the process and no medical waste, toxic material or construction and demolition would be accepted, he said.
Asked by councilor Scott Pope about the emissions, Kazee said they would be far below any state and federal standards for contaminants.
“Our emissions would be so much less than anything Wheelabrator did, it would surprise you,” Kazee said, adding incineration could be a condition in any property tax agreement.
Kazee said without a tax break from the city, the only options for the property would be restarting the incinerator, or completely dismantling the plant, leaving a vacant lot with not much value.
He said the proposal would stabilize the tax base on the property and bring about 25 jobs at $14 to $15 an hour.
“We feel like this would be a success here if we have the opportunity,” said Kazee.
He said gasification is common across the country, such as landfills, including Claremont’s, with pipes installed to vent methane gas as the waste decomposes.
A few residents spoke after Kazee’s presentation, including Donna Montenegro who — along with Cornelia Sargent — urged the council to delay any decision on scheduling a public hearing until they know more about gasification.
“I’m fearful of gasification,” said Montenegro, who was worried about the effects it could have on the environment, global warming, the health of residents and property values.
Her husband, Ernest, called the technology “suspicious” and said he didn’t want another drawn out fight like the one some in the community engaged in with Wheelabrator while trying to close the incinerator.
“It has been around for years. There is nothing unknown, scary or suspicious about it,” Kazee replied. “You are protected by the Department of Environmental Services to ensure any operation is safe from an emissions perspective.”
Before Kazee spoke, City Manager Guy Santagate said the assessed value of the plant has been cut to $2 million because of Wheelabrator’s inability to find a buyer and the highest bid at the most recent auction.
At the current tax rate, that would equal about $83,000 in annual property taxes. No figure was mentioned for a possible tax agreement with Kazee’s group, but councilor Nick Koloski said if it turned out to be $60,000 a year for five years, it was not worth it to him.
“If I’m asked to choose between the health and welfare of the community or $60,000, I’m clearly opting not to take the money,” said Koloski.
After the meeting, Kazee said his company could not operate just the recycling business and buy energy from the power company because it would be too expensive.
Also last night, the council voted to expand the defined area of Moody Park by merging the park with a 134 acre city-owned lot to the west where much of the park’s trail network is established.
Because of a noted discrepancy between the 1916 Moody Park deed, which states William Moody gave the city 175 acres, and the city assessing records showing the park with just 90 acres, the council agreed with councilor Bruce Temple’s suggestion for a process to produce a map and accurately calculate the acreage and make that part of the recorded deed.
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
