Hog heaven: solid waste facility proposed

US - If Pat Hannon has his way, he would close Big Daddy's restaurant and bar on Route 109 in Acton and, in its place, would open a solid waste facility and a pig farm.
calendar icon 17 October 2007
clock icon 3 minute read

The local businessman, who lives in Massachusetts and owns a vacation home and other property in Acton, has proposed a solid waste handling facility behind his current businesses, Pit Stop Mobil and Big Daddy's BBQ, located directly across from the Acton Fairgrounds at the corner of Route 109 and Milton Mills Road in Acton.

"All those businesses (the gas station and the restaurant) are marginal businesses," Hannon said. "If the solid waste handling facility is approved, the restaurant will leave and sit empty. I don't know what I'll do with it. Although I may consider taking down some buildings and reconfiguring the property in the future."

Hannon said he plans to keep the gas station and convenience store open.

He has already begun work on a pig farm, located on the back side of the 11.5-acre lot, intended for raising about 120 pigs to market weight for slaughter and donation to charitable organizations at home and abroad. He said the idea came about after his kids handled some pigs at the Acton Fair this summer, heard details from his recent trip to poverty-stricken Central America and put two and two together.

But he does need permission for the solid waste facility. The property is located in a general purpose zone that permits solid waste as a conditional use, Hannon said. "It's one of the uses allowed in the bylaws."

Hannon, CEO of Mass Environmental Associates and former business development manager for Boston Environmental and Trucking, developed a handful of soil disposal facilities in Massachusetts and was previously involved in a firm that operated landfills in Taunton, Lowell, Milton and Plymouth, Mass.

The solid waste handling facility he has proposed for Acton has generated hostility from residents and members of the planning board, who have voiced concerns ranging from noise and odor to environmental considerations.

The facility is expected to handle "useless, unwanted or discarded solid material with insufficient liquid content to be free flowing, including but not limited to rubbish, garbage, scrap materials, junk, refuse, inert fill material, landscape refuse."

In addition to commercial customers, Hannon said, the facility would be open to residents to deposit their solid waste or construction and demolition materials

Source: KeepMEcurrent.com
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