DNREC will hold a public hearing on the potential redevelopment of the former Vlasic Pickle site at 29984 Pinnacle Way in Dagsboro Tuesday, Dec. 17.
At the request of the public, the date and location of the public hearing have been changed: The Dec. 17 public hearing will begin at 6 p.m. at the Millsboro Town Hall, 322 Wilson Highway, Millsboro, DE 19966. The hearing had been scheduled for earlier in the afternoon, a time that would have made attending the hearing difficult for those working during the day.
Allen M. Harim Foods has entered into a brownfields development agreement (BDA) with DNREC, with the intent of purchasing the site and converting the facility to a poultry processing plant. A BDA is an agreement between DNREC and a brownfields developer with respect to a Certified Brownfields Site that sets forth a scope of work and remedial activities during development of the site. The public hearing will be held to discuss the proposed plan of remedial action by DNREC’s Site Investigation and Restoration Section.
Allen Harim Foods has entered into a brownfields development agreement with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, calling for the purchase of the site converting the facility to a poultry processing plant.
The agreement is between DNREC and a brownfields developer with respect to a Certified Brownfields Site that sets forth a scope of work and remedial activities during development of the site.
The public workshop will give residents an opportunity to understand environmental issues being addressed by DNREC in the event that the former Vlasic site is acquired by Allen M. Harim Foods and converted to a poultry processing plant. The plant would employ 700 people. The workshop is the Community Involvement Advisory Council’s response to public comments on the brownfields development agreement.
DNREC subject matter experts will be present at the workshop to address specific questions about the site. The Department of Health and Social Services’ Office of Drinking Water (ODW) will also be present to discuss surrounding community drinking water systems to the Vlasic/Pinnacle site.
Plans to convert the plant have led to neighborhood opposition to the project. In addition to water issues, neighbors are concerned about noise and odors. Allen Harim officials have said the plant will be a world-class facility that will not have the issues of older processing sites.
While the opposition has raised concerns about the business climate in the state, it has not come with the ferocity seen in the opposition to the Data Centers project in Newark. The Data Centers project also involves zoning with the City of Newark and the issue of whether the power plant for the site is a primary or an auxiliary use.
A panel of subject matter experts will provide an overview of the permitting processes, and also will explain the public health and environmental protection provided by DNREC’s permitting programs. DNREC and ODW staff will be available for questions at poster stations located throughout the hall. Subject matter experts will reconvene for a question-and-answer session at the close of the workshop.
The community council was established in 2001 to enable DNREC to interact with communities. The 11 member body is appointed by the governor to advise the DNREC Secretary on matters such as the relationships and interactions between the Department and communities throughout the state. In addition to its primary charge of assuring that no community is disparately affected by environmental impacts, the CIAC is also responsible for increasing community participation and the flow of information between communities and the Department, according to a DNREC release.
For more information, contact James Brunswick, DNREC community ombudsman, or Robert Newsome, Site Investigation and Restoration Section public information officer, at 302-739-9000.
