Agenda - Council - 09/13/1982 - Special

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I I I I I I I I I :1 I I I I I I 16 city council of potential land use conflicts in the future. Although residen- tial development is occurring close to the landfill, neither the market value nor sales of homes appear to be adversely affected by the landfill. It is not known whether recent buyers of homes near the landfill were aware of its proximity. However, after a sanitary landfill is closed and the site has been completely restored, land values may recover and even increase. An example would be when a relandscaped landfill site is designated for a park or golf course. A 1975 California study showed that expensive houses closest to a landfill were more desirable (and consequently assessed at a higher rate) because the landfill was designated to become a golf course after the facility was closed. It is questionable whether the land values of farms would be adversely affected by a landfill. Twin Cities Area assessors contacted stated that the land value is based on its productivity rather than location. The potential loss of value of a farm would depend on the factors discussed previously. It appears that the potential for property value impacts can be reduced by carefully planning the location of the fill area and buffer zone, providing adequate screening and planning for an end use acceptable to the community. Even if all impacts associated with a landfill are reduced to the greatest extent possible, a loss of property value may still occur. In such cases, com- pensation may be desirable. Compensation may be provided by guaranteeing the market value of the property before the landfill was constructed to property owners who live close to a landfill who wish to sell their houses. POTENTIAL TAX LOSSES Any community in-'which~a sanitary landfill is to be sited may have to rezone land or grant special-use permits. In rural areas where landfills are likely to be sited on land zoned for agricultural use, the land would be rezoned commercial. If a county owns a landfill the site would be tax exempt, which would incur a tax loss for the community. Private ownership of a landfill would likely result in increased tax revenues for a community, particularly if agricultura.1 land were rezoned commercial. Even though a landfill site would be replanted with vegetation, in the long term the land would have only limited use. This may restrict the potential for development and consequently the strengthening of the tax base. On the other hand, if a landfill site were to be turned into a recreational area or indus- trial park, the value of surrounding properties may increase, offsetting the the loss from the landfill site. To offset tax losses incurred by locating tax-exempt facilities in a community, a county could pay the affected community a cash grant equal to the assessed value of the landfill. To alleviate tax revenue losses in the long term, a community could plan future development around a facility once the landfill fill is closed. iI