Richland County has recently seen demolition of some sizable structures with funding for this sector of Community Development. The Mansfield P.R.I.D.E. tax levy provided $600,000 for demolition projects in 2014, which means around 70 homes and vacant buildings are slotted for demolition throughout the year. Last year resulted in 180 demolitions in Mansfield.
With this high of a number of demolitions, it is a wonder where all that debris disappears to. Is it shipped to a landfill? Is the material reused? What happens to all the rubble?
Furthermore, when all the debris pile-up is gone, it is up to the entity that owns the property to decide what happens next.
There are three demolition sites that many people in Richland County were sad to see go: John Simpson Middle School, Madison Junior High School and Mansfield’s Westinghouse. What happened to all of the rubble from these structures?
For John Simpson Middle School, the answer is multifaceted, and representative of how complex the process can become. Fay Crushing & Stones, based out of Lima, is currently crushing the rubble on site, then transporting it to different locations. They specialize in crushing stones, bricks and concrete to later sell to other construction companies, which turn around to use for creating base fill and mortar. Deer Creek Excavating from Bellville is one company buying the crushed stone.
The John Simpson property is still owned by Mansfield City School District. They have no plans for the property after demolition is completed. However, Deer Creek’s contract with the district states that once the demolition is complete, Deer Creek will purchase the property for one dollar for community development purposes.
Madison contracted their building to Quandel Construction out of Cleveland. They then held auctions for different construction material from the demolition. Various construction companies bought the material.
Westinghouse sent their debris to Rumpke’s transfer station first, where the debris was loaded onto trucks and sent to Rumpke’s landfill in Plymouth on Noble Road. The Westinghouse property located on Fifth Street is now privately owned.
According to Director of Economic Development Tim Bowersock, the city has been told that the partnership that owns the property has plans to redevelop it. He also stated the partnership is working on the redevelopment plan and that they will share it with Community Development once it is complete.
There are two types of landfills: Demolition, which receives less regulation from the government; and municipal solid waste landfills, which receive strict regulation from the government. Municipal landfills are limited to how much debris they are allowed to bring in from day to day.
Municipal landfills are subjugated to governmental regulation because of the waste products: most of what residents dispose of in garbage containers. Trash from homes have chemicals intermixed, and need to be assessed thoroughly before burying them into the ground.
Demolition debris is less tricky- unless it is contaminated by asbestos or lead. If the material is contaminated, certified inspectors must remove the contaminates before demolition even begins. Then the debris is likely contracted out to different construction companies.
There is one operating municipal solid waste landfill in Richland County, Rumpke Noble Road Landfill. Rumpke also owns a Richland County Transfer Station, located on Newman Street in Mansfield and it is the only place that accepts demolition debris. But according to Kenneth Bender, Richland County’s Executive Director of Richland County Solid Waste Authority, that’s only a limited amount.
Once the capacity is met at the transfer station, the debris is likely transferred to the landfill in Shiloh.
Some demolished buildings in Mansfield hold cherished memories and storied pasts. But the empty properties they once occupied now sit as promises and hopeful futures to create new memories for the community.
For more information on the development of demolitions in Richland County, contact Community Development in Mansfield at 419-755-9793.
