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In a struggle to build a waste-to-energy plant, an attorney for Doral, where fire destroyed the old plant in February 2023, offered $40 million over 30 years if a new $1 billion-plus plant goes elsewhere. Miami-Dade commission Chairman Oliver Gilbert III said that wasn’t enough.
“It doesn’t appear to be the sentiment of the board that $44 million would be enough over 30 years,” he responded to Doral City Attorney Lorenzo Cobiella’s offer of “about $40 million over a period of 30 to 35 years.” The amount discussed varied from $40 million to $44 million.
Mr. Gilbert said the commission must compute the cost, “the actual difference between keeping it there and moving it someplace else.”
Mr. Cobiella told commissioners “it is the desire of the City of Doral to be a partner in this and look for a location that is suitable and meets the needs not only of the residents of Doral, but really this is an issue that we believe affects all the residents of Miami-Dade County, and as such, we ask you to really look at this holistically.”
Holistic aside, Mr. Gilbert said, “we’re going to come back with some solutions, but they’re all predicated on financial models … if we’re factoring in $44 million, it just won’t work. I’m telling you, it won’t work.” No one rebutted that.
In the end, commissioners promised to pick a waste-to-energy site by early December. Construction then would take seven to 10 years, with use starting in 2033.
At locations discussed at earlier meetings, communities complained about foul smells and potential contamination. Doral officials said the community has been processing county waste for almost 40 years and it’s someone else’s turn.
Miami Today reported in mid-2022 that if the plant moved from Doral, financial contributions would be expected from the city “because of the increased property values and tax proceeds from the site of the current” waste plant.
Commissioner Eileen Higgins urged commissioners “who represent municipalities to get a deep understanding of what the incremental cost to your municipalities are going to be on an annual basis. All of their rates will go up, obviously. But for example, the City of Miami, which picks up its own garbage but uses our facility … they’ll be spending … 3.4 million more dollars a year for the new facility.”
Addressing Doral’s $40 million offer, she added, “if you divided it over 30 years, the residents of Doral will only be spending $1.3 million a year” and the city “has a lot more money than $1.3 million a year, if this matters.”
Chief Operations Officer Jimmy Morales said his team is “trying to figure out what exactly is the cost differential between building it in the … current … site and building it at one of these multiple locations.”
Land ownership will affect cost. The administration recommends an Opa-locka West Airport site on public land. An Okeechobee site on private land includes a land-swap offer to the county. A Medley site also on private land consists of multiple parcels where the plant could rise. Other sites being considered include the current Doral site and an industrial tract in Medley.
Commissioner Raquel Regalado said she expects the county to create “a funding stream for solid waste that would be separate and apart from our current funding.” She suggested tax increment financing, a tool used to subsidize redevelopment, infrastructure, and community improvements.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
