MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Neighbors in Nutbush are cheering Thursday after standing up to a developer who’d planned a landfill near their homes.
Blaylock and Brown Construction proposed to build a landfill on Davis Circle in northeast Memphis. Neighbors and activists opposed it, speaking out at meetings and signing petitions against it.
The Memphis and Shelby County Land Use Control Board was supposed to decide whether to let the project move forward Thursday, but the applicant withdrew the application at the last moment.
“We’re pleased about that,” said Ward Archer with Protect our Aquifer. “Being in a floodplain, those would eventually get into the Wolf River and the Memphis sand aquifer.”
Emotions ran high for Grady Bennett when he talked about his Nutbush neighborhood. He moved there nearly five years ago and felt like he found where he belonged. That’s why he started doing all he could to protect it when he saw a threat.
“It’s a great feeling. Honestly, from the start, we didn’t want it here,” Bennett said. “I stand up for what’s right. I just feel like this is not what we need.”
Norman Brown already owns and operates a construction landfill like that in Collierville. WREG reported on Wednesday that the state is investigating the site for environmental concerns.
Company representatives did not return calls from WREG Wednesday and Thursday.
The people who live near the Nutbush site say they’d rather this empty space be turned into a public park for everyone to enjoy.
But they also knew there was a chance the developer would apply again to install a landfill. They said if that happened, they’d be ready to fight it again.