WAYNESBORO -- Michelle Carter can't wait for the municipal landfill to close.

But she's been told before that the 18-acre mound of trash adjacent to her Hoarse Avenue home would close for good. She'll believe it when it happens.

"I think it really needs to be shut down," Carter said. "It's nasty. At night, if it's really hot, then it stinks and it's a god-awful smell. But I've heard they're going to close it before."

That day might be coming sooner than she expects. The City Council is set to consider two contracts on Monday night for shutting down the landfill.

The lowest bid is for $2.6 million from Central Contracting Inc. of West Virginia. If the contract is awarded Monday night, it should take about six months for the work to be completed, said Mike Hamp, assistant city manager.

City officials have plans to turn the landfill into a park but when that might happen is still up in the air, Hamp said.

The first step is to close the facility in accordance with state Department of Environmental Quality standards. Once that is completed, a "passive recreation park " -- one without facilities such as baseball diamonds or basketball courts -- is the only option because of DEQ restrictions on how the land can be re-used, Hamp said.

"Sunset Park" will be a welcome addition to the neighborhood, Carter said. But she would prefer the city not use Horace Avenue as an access point, like the plans call for. Children play on the dead-end road now, and she's worried about what traffic would do to the neighborhood.

A small portion of the proposed work involves the park. Some grading for future parking areas would be included in the cost. Hamp said the city's plan for access points to the park were included on the site plan so that the city wouldn't have to re-submit plans to DEQ in the future.

Central Contracting's bid is within 1 percent of the cost city engineers predicted last fall when drawing up an estimate for the council. The city has been setting aside money throughout the life of the landfill to pay for the closure. That account will cover most of the cost, and the remainder will come from the general fund.

Neighbors said they won't be sorry to see it go.

"Living this close, I'm glad they're getting ready to close it," said Wayne Fix who lives nearby. He said it doesn't bother him too much being so close, but he looks forward to the park being up there.

When it was operating at full capacity a few years ago, trash would blow into Carter's yard on a daily basis. It still happens today but not as often, she said.

"I'm ready for it to close, especially if it's going to get rid of that smell," Carter said.

Originally published Sunday, June 27, 2004