Tire grant approved, citizens can bring old tires to city dump

The City of Olney won a $31,000 grant to remove a massive pile of tires from an abandoned service station on Main Street, and invited residents with illegal caches of tires to dispose of them for free at the City’s convenience station, Interim City Administrator Arpegea Pagsuberon said.

“We asked for $41,000 and were granted $31,000,” Pagsuberon said. “We believe that is sufficient to clear all the tires from the abandoned station, to invite private citizens to use this opportunity to dispose of the tires that they haven’t been inclined to pay the fees on,” she said. “The businesses that run tires out of their stores do not qualify. They have their own permitting, their own process that they are required to go through.”

The City also is inviting people who want to work off citations through community service to help public works employees load the tires onto flatbed trucks during the two-week removal process.

“If we can reach out to some people who have outstanding citations that they would like to take care of - they’d like to settle their legal obligation, community service would be a good way to do it,” she said.

The dates of the removal will be announced when the City receives the go-ahead from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the Nortex Regional Planning Commission, which awarded the grant.

In the meantime, the City is soliciting bids to remove and dispose of the tires and will be ready to move in about two weeks, said Code Enforcement Officer Dustin Hudson.

“Once we select a company to remove and dispose of them, we will set a date to get it done,” Hudson said. “Just the tire shop and the convenience station is going to take us, we estimate, roughly about two weeks. We have to move them by hand.”

The winning removal company will have to train City and community service workers how to load the trucks, he said.

“Part of the bid is they have to teach the City workers how to stack the tires to get the most volume,” Hudson said. “We are paying by the load to place the tires so we can get the most bang for our buck out of each trailer.”

Hudson estimated that the City will fill seven to 10 trailers from the abandoned gas station at 301 East Main Street, and about half that number from the City convenience station.

Pagsuberon said the City will remove all tires from the Main Street location and use remaining funds to clear the convenience station of tires.

“With everything that happens at the two locations, whatever is left at the convenience station can safely stay there,” Pagsuberon said. “So that is priority number one is removing all of those [gas station] tires first and with whatever funds are left we will be clearing the convenience station.

A City ordinance mandates that private citizens can store no more than five used or scrapped tires on their property. Tires constitute a fire, health and safety hazard because of they are highly flammable and provide shelter to vermin and mosquitos, said Police Chief Dan Birbeck.

People who want to dispose of their tires for free at the City convenience station at 5920 Olney Road during the two-week tire cleanup must show proof that they reside within the city limits, Birbeck said.

“This is not for the surrounding area, only for our local residents in the incorporated city limits,” he said. “Citizens will be provided information about when and where they can bring their tires to be disposed of.”

The case has been forward to the District Attorney’s Office for consideration to be put before the Grand Jury.