Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Works And Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
After storm, Levelland manager outlines aggressive cleanup plan as landfill capacity limits options
Summary
City Manager James Fisher told council staff aim to remove most storm debris from the Sherman corridor quickly but face landfill-capacity and permit limits; staff described using a county caliche pit, working with FEMA and limiting what can be accepted as green waste.
A resident's public comment about persistent dumping at the Sherman and Mabel debris field prompted a lengthy operations update from City Manager James Fisher on storm-related cleanup and disposal options.
Public commenter Jan Simnakker said the site was "absolutely disgusting" and urged fencing, cameras or immediate cleanup. Fisher responded with an operational plan: move green waste from city debris sites to a county caliche pit provided by a county commissioner, prioritize clearing Sherman, and seek FEMA assistance on public-disaster assistance paperwork.
Fisher described immediate limits on what can be accepted at green-waste collection under the city's TCEQ permit: "Green waste is only natural items," he said, and advised that items such as couches cannot be burned due to chemical content. He told council the city's landfill had reached capacity for the fiscal year, forcing staff to look for alternative disposal and to re-bid construction/demolition disposal contracts for a new type-4 pit. Fisher said staff's short-term goal was to get Sherman ‘‘completely clean tomorrow, or at least to the 90 percentile.’’
Council discussed practical constraints — reinspection, bid reissuance for a new pit, and the possibility of consolidating material to the rail park if necessary. Staff noted they had an extension from the Texas Forest Service for a grant-funded brush truck purchase and asked for contract authorization to place the order. Council authorized the city manager to enter that purchase agreement.
What remains open: the exact timeline for full debris removal depends on landfill and contractor availability; council asked staff to return with RFP results for hail-damage repairs and with updates on bids to restore disposal capacity.
