MACON, Ga. — A proposed solid waste transfer facility is still on the table in south Macon. If approved, it would be right across the street from a playground.
The people trying to build it say the location is just what they need, but some in the surrounding neighborhood worry about its proximity to the park and their homes.
A waste transfer station is essentially a place for trash to go before it goes to the dump. A lawyer for Guy Eberhardt, the man applying for a permit to build, says it would be better for the environment.
But people who use the roads around the neighborhood and the park worry about increased traffic and a possible decrease in home values.
"We have reached out to them. They're not happy about it. But getting here is difficult for them. So please don't hold that against the neighborhood," said Macon Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Ivey Hall of neighbors in the community.
Hall's group has worked in Lynmore Estates for years, building new homes and working to revitalize it.
"It's a business dealing that's affecting the lives of so many people. Not only Habitat families, but so many other families that call Lynmore Estates home," Hall said.
Last month, Hall and other opponents thought the waste transfer station proposal was on pause.
County commissioners placed a moratorium on all new waste facilities, so they could revise their solid waste plan. The county zoning board says since this was already in process, it won't impact the project. So, on Monday, it was back on the agenda.
"It's a quarter of a mile away from Mead Road, which as this commission knows, is a fully industrial road," said state Sen. John Kennedy, who's representing Eberhardt.
Kennedy believes the project is in the right place since the zoning checks out. He also believes the way the site is planned would make it acceptable for the neighborhood.
"It won't be seen. Between the distance, and the lower elevation, it won't be heard," Kennedy told the zoning board.
Hall says regardless of the plans, it's still a neighborhood.
"It is still a waste management facility across the street from a park and a neighborhood," Hall said.
It's a neighborhood she hopes more families will want to call home, instead of trash facilities.
Eberhardt's group did make some changes since the last zoning board meeting.
They moved the truck entrance farther down Mead Road, away from the park. They also moved back the facility itself. It would be behind a tree line.