Douglas County officials on Dec. 16, 2025, opened a rebuilt Waste Transfer Station and the county’s first undercover recycling center, marking what leaders called a long-awaited expansion of local waste and recycling services.

"It has been a long time coming," said Heath Cowart, director, as he described the new facility that replaces a transfer station that burned down three years earlier. Cowart said the prior facility had operated for about 25 years as a temporary structure and that the new transfer station is roughly three times the previous facility’s square footage. He told attendees the transfer station "will be open on Monday."

The project team credited SPLOST funding for enabling construction. "This is the fourth project we are completing this year using SPLOST funding," said Julia Janka, director of the county’s project management department, which opened in 2025 and led early projects under that financing plan.

Contractor representatives and local trade partners attended the ribbon-style event. Todd Haney, introduced as the general manager of the contracting firm involved, thanked the Board of Commissioners, procurement staff and a long list of local subcontractors and suppliers who worked on the job, including Thompson Grading, Doggett Concrete, Fairbanks Scales, Kemp Electric and others.

Kevin Whipple, vice president of CSC Design, said CSC handled the civil design work and acknowledged Keystone Structural Engineering and Savant Engineering for structural and mechanical, electrical and plumbing contributions. "It is truly a team effort," Whipple said.

Dr. Ramona Jackson Jones, chair of the Douglas County Board of Commissioners, said the facility fulfills a long-standing resident request for recycling services. "This is the day that we've been waiting on for recycling here in Douglas County," she said, noting the Dec. 16, 2025, date. District 3 Commissioner Martin Raxton encouraged residents to use the new 'state-of-the-art' center and transfer station.

County officials said the recycling operations are now undercover, which they expect will provide a cleaner and safer place for residents and businesses to drop off materials. Specific square-footage numbers beyond the "three times" comparison, a precise opening calendar date for public use beyond Cowart’s "Monday" remark, and any immediate changes to fees or hours were not specified in the event remarks.

The county did not announce a final schedule for regular public hours in the remarks; officials said staff and the Board would continue to provide operational details to residents. The event concluded with thanks to staff, contractors and partners and an invitation for residents to begin using the new recycling and transfer services once county staff opens the site to the public.