ORANGE COUNTY, Fla,None — An Orange County commissioner plans to push for a vote later this month to stop the expansion of a landfill in Apopka.
Nearly 80 Apopka residents joined Commissioner Fred Brummer at a meeting Monday night to voice their opinion against the expansion.
City commissioners voted to upgrade the Vista Landfill on Keene Road from a class three to a class one, allowing it to collect household garbage.
Brummer said the upgraded landfill would take business away from the county's landfill, and that means residents would pay more for service.
“For unincorporated Orange County residents that will increase the cost of their garbage bill,” said Brummer.
Brummer said the increase would be $35 per year.
Right now the Vista Landfill is a class three site, which means it can only accept waste and construction debris. But the city of Apopka voted to upgrade it to a class one, which would allow it to accept household garbage.
"First off I'm concerned about the odor," said resident Glen Evans.
Evans went to a public meeting Monday regarding the expansion because he's worried his property value would plummet.
"Who's going to buy a house when it stinks? Would you?" asked Evans.
Orange County school board officials also voiced concerns at Monday night's meeting.
Orange County School Board member Christine Moore is worried about Clarcona and Phillis Wheatley Elementary Schools nearby.
If the expansion goes through, some school board officials said Clarcona Elementary School may have to close.
The school is just under a mile away from the landfill.
"I think the biggest issue is the waste from the birds flying over and the environmental impact to the school. There's also diseases specifically for asthmatics and respiratory problems that could be caused to the children," Moore said.
But an official with Waste Management, the company that runs the Vista Landfill, pointed out there are multiple schools within a two mile vicinity of the class one Young Pine Landfill in Orange County.
Residents who live near the Young Pine Landfill told WFTV the smell can be stifling.
"Bad. You don't want to come outside at all," said resident Karla Young.
WFTV
