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Alleghany County outlines plan and financing options to replace aging transfer station
Summary
County operations and finance staff presented a plan for a new 10,000 sq ft transfer facility to replace a 1,622 sq ft tipping floor, citing capacity and safety concerns, and laid out financing options including a $1.3 million 0% federal-backed loan, use of fund balance, a potential solid-waste levy, and fee adjustments.
Alleghany County officials presented details of a proposed replacement for the county's 30-year-old transfer facility and outlined a multistep financing strategy that county leaders say will be needed to build a modern tipping floor and support facilities.
David Spicer, introduced to the board as the county operations manager, described recurring operational problems at the current transfer station, including structural deterioration, an accident involving construction material and a loader, and a sharp rise in waste volumes. Spicer said the county previously averaged about 600–700 tons of solid waste per month but is now averaging over 1,000 tons per month, and that the existing 1,622-square-foot tipping floor is too small to handle current equipment and traffic.
"This will be a 10,000 square foot building," Spicer said of the proposed footprint, which the presentation shows as a 100-by-100 building with a 28-foot-high entrance, concrete tipping floor, eight-foot concrete push walls and separated residential and commercial traffic flows. The plan includes an office, staff changing and shower facilities, storage and a dedicated pit area for loading trailers.
April (finance lead) and other staff reviewed funding paths the board could pursue. The county has applied for a $1,300,000 Rural Economic Development loan (no interest, 10-year term) that requires Local Government Commission (LGC) approval and a public hearing; an application is due at the end of September and decisions could take up to 90 days. Staff said the loan includes a one-year deferral option and explicit USDA/Electric Membership Corporation conditions that construction cannot begin until funding is received.
County staff also described internal and state funding sources: $31,498 remained from a prior $200,000 state capital-improvement grant (the remainder was used on a dispatch project and generator), the audited FY24 fund balance was presented as context for potential use of enterprise savings, and officials outlined a possible dedicated solid-waste property levy (estimated at 6¢ per $100 of property value to generate about $1.18 million) and potential increases in commercial tipping fees (currently $75/ton). Staff noted grant opportunity work and an upcoming grant-writer position that could identify additional funding.
Officials warned that total project costs remain uncertain until design and bidding are complete; staff estimated the full project could be in the low millions and suggested an early seed of money would be needed to complete design and proceed to bidding in January–February. April told the commissioners the county must complete the LGC loan process and a public hearing for possible REDLG approval this month to meet application deadlines.
No formal board vote was required at the presentation; commissioners asked for further financial detail and will consider fund-balance transfers and other options at future meetings. Next steps identified by staff included completing design work with TRC, submitting the LGC application and holding the required LGC public hearing on September 15, and returning to the board with a draft contract and a full financing recommendation.
