Ohio County Kills $100M Recycling Project
Correction: The original headline on this story wrongly identified the state as Tennessee.
The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) has canceled a $100 million project that would have brought new recycling and waste-to-energy facilities to Franklin County.
The plan had been in the works for three years. But in recent months the company that was supposed to build the facility, Team Gemini, failed to pay rent on land it has leased next to the Frankly County landfill. As a result, sent a letter to the company’s lawyer and the local project director canceling the deal, according to multiple reports.
A second phase would have been a more than green energy park that would create gas, oil and energy by digesting organic wastes.
According to The Columbus Dispatch:
“The project is done. By virtue of our letter, we’ve terminated the contract. We’ve taken possession of the property,” said Ty Marsh, SWACO’s executive director.
Team Gemini was supposed to pay SWACO about $350,000 as an annual rent payment two months ago, but it missed that deadline. SWACO gave the company a 60-day extension, which passed Tuesday.
The letter said the company failed to pay rent but also “improperly suspended the project.”
Lee declined to comment. Ferris and the company’s majority owner, Patricia Wark, could not be reached for comment.
SWACO had leased about 350 acres to the Florida-based company, which was supposed to build a $100 million facility where garbage trucks would dump trash for recyclables to be removed. Team Gemini then would pay SWACO for the materials, sell them on the open market and dump the rest of the trash at the landfill.
The Columbus Business First reported in recent months about delays in the project. SWACO had signed a land lease and development agreement with Team Gemini in 2012. But in recent months, management changes at SWACO and with the company led to disagreements and falling commodities prices for recycled materials also threw a wrench in the project.
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