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Community Park. The park includes an
<br />18 -hole golf course with driving range,
<br />putting greens and clubhouse, a 17 -
<br />court tennis center and clubhouse, five
<br />illuminated softball fields and four
<br />lighted soccer fields.
<br />Charlotte Parks Superintendent
<br />Thomas McDermott says the new park
<br />and a new adjacent coliseum are en-
<br />couraging economic growth in the once
<br />stagnant area. McDermott says the new
<br />facilities have attracted a number of
<br />businesses and caused land values to in-
<br />crease.
<br />Woolpert also is working on a mas-
<br />sive landfill -to -park project in Prince
<br />George's County, Md., just outside
<br />Washington, D.C. The county's former
<br />220 -acre sanitary landfill has been
<br />closed and transformed into outdoor
<br />recreational facilities, bicycle and hik-
<br />ing trails and a custom contoured am-
<br />phitheater. The project is expected to
<br />help revitalize the surrounding area.
<br />The firm prepared plans for four for-
<br />mer landfill sites in the Ohio cities of
<br />Westerville, Moraine, Springfield and
<br />Newton. All four projects, which in-
<br />cluded athletic fields, picnic shelters,
<br />biking paths, basketball courts and
<br />A Renaissance in harlo�te
<br />outhwest Charlotte. N -C.. has
<br />to prevent methane gas from escap-
<br />managed to kill two birds with
<br />.. ing. It also is monitoring groundwa-
<br />one stone. The proverbial stone
<br />'ter around the former landfill site for
<br />that the city threw managed not only
<br />the next few decades.
<br />to rid the region: of its unsightly
<br />Almost more exciting to the com-
<br />landfill that was dangerously nearing
<br />munity than the York Road Renais,-
<br />capacity, but also resulted in the
<br />sante Community Park itself is the
<br />cons"ction of a massive recrea-
<br />expected revitalization it is sparking
<br />tional park right where the Iandfill
<br />in the economy of Southwest Char -
<br />previously was Iocated. This over-
<br />_..,. lotte. Thomas McDermott, superin-
<br />haul, called the York Road Renais-
<br />tendent of parks, is very upbeat
<br />sante Community Park. not only is
<br />,. about the emerging prospects. "The
<br />.-park, in concert with a new adjacent =k
<br />coliseum, is doing a fine job of spur-
<br />;;Aul[rjr(fyp]-ring the economy into shape." Ai-
<br />r�ready,; hotels and business parks
<br />xof ,Merit -Zna have Sprung up around the inlmedI- '
<br />mate area. -"The coliseum has at-
<br />..:. tracted a, tremendous amount of;
<br />bringing about a resurgence in the
<br />business," he lays. "Land values
<br />area's economy, but earned first
<br />,"'have skyrocketed in that area."
<br />place in the parks and recreation
<br />: -.The fume of Southwest Charlotte
<br />-•
<br />category of the 1999 Amadcan_City.`}
<br />..looks positive. York Road Renais—
<br />& County Awards of Merit-
<br />lance Community Park promises to
<br />- ,The idea to transform the Landfill.::
<br />attract a slew of businesses and
<br />into a park belongs to the Charlotte
<br />s'A'dentia[ developments. With this in- :;•,
<br />-: Parks and Recreation Department.Nflux::of.
<br />people and businesses that
<br />', and dates back to 1981. Actual con-
<br />Y` depend'ort• each other for goods and
<br />'struction of the park began. in. 1986
<br />i• 4�services, McDermott sees no early
<br />I+rgid
<br />and the results are becoming evident
<br />to the growth potential for the. ,•
<br />now. The park boasts an 18 -hole golf.
<br />=�`" man; `the whole thing is working.:-
<br />course with driving range. putting•-'
<br />together.". he says. "Everythin9 is'ir
<br />greens and clubhouse, a 17 -court
<br />-" feeding off of itsetf."
<br />tennis center and clubhouse, five U-.,-
<br />• .,: What had once been a languishing
<br />tuminated softball fields and four
<br />. region in Charlotte has been turned
<br />lighted soccer fields- A completion
<br />around and set on its feet due to the
<br />date for the latter two features and
<br />innovative ideas of some concerned
<br />for the park as a whole is set for the
<br />.; community Ieaders. York Road Re_
<br />end of this summer. The project will
<br />' Inaissance Community Park has
<br />cost approximately $15 million and
<br />proven to be a renaissance for this
<br />small fees will be charged to park•.,•:
<br />section of town. A park replaced a
<br />users_
<br />fandfilI, progress replaced stagna-
<br />The developers, Wooipert Consul-
<br />.: tion, and Southwest Charlotte has
<br />tants, were meticulous in their plan-
<br />•= become a brand new region, amthet-
<br />ning and construction procedurm
<br />ically and economically. ❑
<br />Domestic waste, the chief ingredient
<br />in the former landfill, measured 30
<br />by ' 80 feet. Consequently, under the
<br />This article war written by John Aguilar,
<br />tees and greens on the golf course,
<br />editorial assistant for American City &
<br />the firm installed polyethylene liners
<br />County.
<br />52
<br />other features, made a significant con-
<br />tribution to sparking economic growth
<br />in their communities.
<br />Potential problems
<br />Although landfill -to -park project i
<br />be a catalyst for economic growth and
<br />generally have excellent environmental
<br />safety records, there are several prob-
<br />lems that can develop if strict guidelines
<br />are not followed in closing the landfill
<br />and constructing the park. One of the
<br />most common is the emission of meth-
<br />ane gas from the landfill. If the gas be-
<br />comes too heavily concentrated in a
<br />small area, an explosion can result.
<br />"Methane gas is only dangerous when it
<br />Even the best
<br />landfills may
<br />require ongoing
<br />maintenance
<br />control to
<br />counteract
<br />settling effects.
<br />is contained in a closed structure," says
<br />Gary Stewart, an associate partner with
<br />Woolpert Consultants and project man-
<br />ager for the Chariotte park. "In an
<br />open environment, it is not danger-
<br />ous."
<br />To avoid these problems, most parks
<br />converted from landfills are equipped
<br />with methane gas collection systems.
<br />The gas often is sold to a local utility
<br />which uses it to generate electricity.
<br />Settling of the garbage in a landfill
<br />also can be a Difficult problem, causing
<br />the park's ground to shift. Stewart says
<br />settling usually is not a problem in pic-
<br />nic areas and open spaces, but can do a
<br />great deal of damage to buildings and
<br />paved surfaces. He advises against con-
<br />structing any major buildings or paved
<br />surfaces, including tennis and basket-
<br />ball courts, directly on top of fill areas.
<br />Even the best -designed landfills may
<br />require ongoing maintenance control to
<br />counteract the effects of settling. Dale
<br />Larson, assistant director of Parks,
<br />Recreation and Libraries for Phoenix,
<br />Ariz., says that buildings constructed on
<br />top of fill areas need to be secured with
<br />pilings driven into the ground at very
<br />high pressures and compaction, m:' 'ng
<br />the: structure "almost an island."
<br />Another possible area of concern in-
<br />volves trees planted on soil covering a
<br />landfill. Allen Geswein, an EPA envi-
<br />ronmental engineer, says that if a land -
<br />American City & County/March 1989
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