Printable Press Release

On December 16th the legal complaint filed by 19 Northeast citizens along with Don’t Dump on Northeast (DDONE), a non-profit corporation, had its first hearing in Hennepin County District Court. The lawsuit alleges that the City does not have the proper heavy industrial zoning required for the type of hazardous and other waste collection transfer processes it had proposed to establish at a new facility at its chosen site at 27th and University in Northeast Minneapolis. This initiative was to involve the relocation of the Southside Transfer Station from South Minneapolis as well as the establishment of a Hennepin County Household Hazardous/Toxic Waste facility.

The Court is expected to rule by March 15 on the City of Minneapolis ‘motion to dismiss’ the lawsuit. However, it will be hard to see the outcome of the hearing as anything other than a victory for the plaintiffs – no matter how the court rules.

In order to argue its case that the lawsuit was ‘premature’, the City was forced to backtrack on its whole plan. Until a few weeks ago, the City website stated that it envisioned a groundbreaking for the facility in Spring, 2012. In January 2011, the City spent more than $2 million to acquire the site expressly for the purpose of this facility. The City commissioned a detailed traffic study and presented it to neighborhood groups in the Fall of 2010, built a webpage describing the project, and negotiated extensively with County staff regarding major aspects of the proposed uses. But on December 16th, City attorneys retracted and disavowed all of these previously stated plans to construct the facility at 27th and University, arguing that there is “no project” planned for the site. Most significantly, city attorneys conceded the plaintiff’s main point at the hearing that, given the proposed site’s zoning, the City cannot have primary, accessory or ancillary waste transfer facility uses at the proposed site.

The City had previously argued that–as long as the proposed uses emphasized recycling– it would be fine to have some level of waste transfer uses at the site as well.

“The admission by the City that this is not legally possible is a huge change, it effectively destroys their whole plan,” said nearby neighborhood resident Bruce Shoemaker. “The City acknowledged in court that they can’t have waste transfer uses at this facility, so the whole move of the Southside Transfer Station to Northeast would seem to be off the table.”

This turnaround leaves many questions unanswered—questions that City staff and officials have been avoiding answering for months. Given the recent statements of their attorneys, what exactly is their plan for this site? What is to be the future of the Southside Transfer Station? Is the City continuing its discussions with the County about locating a household hazardous waste facility at 27th and University? It is high time that officials stopped ignoring Northeast residents on this issue and started to provide some answers.

“Northeast neighborhood residents have lived with uncertainty regarding this proposal for almost two years,” said Margie Siegel, whose home is located just a few hundred feet from the proposed facility. “It is time for City staff and officials to admit they made a mistake and that it is not appropriate to locate a facility like this immediately adjacent to a residential area. This whole plan needs a major re-think.” For more information see www.ddone.org or contact Margie Siegel, msiegel@bitstream.net and 612-578-4621.

Printable Update from December 2011

December 2011 Update (in PDF format)

DDONE sues to stop the waste transfer facility proposed for 27th and University Aves NE

On September 6, 2011, Don’t Dump on Northeast (DDONE), along with a group of individual Northeast area residents, launched a legal complaint against the City of Minneapolis over their proposed siting of a waste transfer, hazardous waste and recycling facility directly adjacent to a residential neighborhood at 27th and University Avenues NE. The proposal would include the move of the Southside Transfer Facility to Northeast and the addition of a new Hennepin County Household Hazardous (toxic) Waste facility at the site.

According to the Minneapolis zoning code, it is illegal to site a waste transfer facility at the proposed location. The location is zoned I-2. Waste transfer facilities require the higher-intensity I-3 zoning, while recycling centers can use I-2 with a conditional-use permit. The proposed facility includes some recycling. Planners state they have ‘aspirations’ for additional recycling. However, it will also be a waste transfer facility. According to the City’s own data, only about 30% of the waste going to the Southside Transfer Station is currently recycled. City zoning law, and much legal precedent, says that when multiple uses are proposed on a property, the zoning must be for the highest and most intensive proposed use of a property. In this case, that requires I-3 zoning, something this property doesn’t have.

City officials, once they belatedly realized that the zoning was an issue, made a poor attempt at rebranding the proposed facility as solely a “recycling center.” However, the plan to move the whole Southside Transfer Station to Northeast still stands. This leaves a major contradiction between the reality of the plan and the rhetoric being used to describe it. There is an extensive track record of City communications and documentation that clearly shows this is to be a waste transfer station, not just a recycling facility. DDONE and neighborhood residents challenged this position through the City’s own internal administrative complaint procedures. However, these processes were highly biased in favor of the City’s own position. The City of Minneapolis will not have this same luxury when it has to defend its position in an unbiased court of law. We are confident that we have a strong legal case and that we can stop the proposed facility from being constructed at 27th and University.

Despite losing the first appeal, DDONE is moving ahead to the next appeal…watch for an announcement of date and time!

Public Hearing on DDONE’s Zoning Appeal (past event)

The City of Minneapolis is currently claiming that the proposed Household Hazardous Waste/Construction and Demolition Debris and Voucher Program Facility is a ‘Recycling Center,’ and therefore is eligible to be located in an area zoned for medium industrial use, known as I-2. The City has already purchased an I-2 zoned property located at 340-27th Ave NE for this purpose. Trouble is, these type of facilities are generally located in heavy-industrial areas zoned I-3, not next to homes like the 27th Ave NE site. For this reason (as well as the reasons mentioned here), DDONE has appealed the zoning determination made by the Minneapolis Zoning Administrator, Steve Poor.

This appeal will be considered by the Minneapolis Board of Adjustment, which will hear from all interested parties, including and especially area residents, at a public hearing on Thursday, April 7 at 4:30pm at Room 317 of Minneapolis City Hall, 350 S. 5th St. This room is better known as the City Council Chambers. The meeting site is wheelchair accessible, and those needing other disability-related accommodations are asked to call 612-673-3220 at least five days before the hearing.

Join us April 7!

We have hired an attorney, Jim Peters, who will help present our case. We will also have several DDONE members to present our case. But we can always use more voices of opposition to this ridiculous zoning decision.

We’re fighting this because physical, economic and environmental quality of Northeast Minneapolis is important to all of us. We’re fighting this because the City arrogantly acquired this property on January 20th 2011, despite the zoning issues and the district opposition.We invite you to join the coalition to save our neighborhood, by saying no to siting this facility in a residential area, literally right next to homes. It is important to know that it is not too late to say no. Your opinion counts!

Whether you’re a renter, property owner, neighbor or businessperson, by expressing your opposition and concern, you will make a big difference. Please join us at the hearing on April 7 at 4:30pm at Minneapolis City Hall, Room 317. We look forward to seeing you.

If you can’t attend the Hearing, You can Still Send your Comments! Here’s How!

Send comments on this zoning issue to:
Steve Poor, Zoning Administrator
250 – South 4th St., Room 300
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Phone: 612-673-5837
Fax: 612-673-2526
Email: Steve.Poor@ci.minneapolis.mn.us