To: Board of County Commissioners
Through: Ron Carl, County Attorney
Prepared By:
prepared
Ben Swartzendruber, Sr. Assistant County Attorney
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Subject:
title
Seventh Amendment to Purchase and Sale Agreement for County Line Landfill
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Purpose and Request:
recommended action
The Board is requested to adopt a resolution authorizing the Chair to execute the “Seventh Amendment to Purchase and Sale Agreement” pertaining to the County Line Landfill, by which the parties will again extend the current “contingency period” and allow additional time to obtain the final necessary Douglas County development approvals before executing the long-term ground lease approved by the parties.
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Background and Discussion: In April 2020, the County entered a Purchase and Sale Agreement (“PSA”) to sell the County Line Landfill to HRH-470 LLC. Since the PSA was executed, HRH-470 has been diligently working on obtaining approvals from Douglas County that would allow it to develop the property as it deems necessary and has also had conversations with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (“CDPHE”) regarding the monitoring and maintenance obligations that will be required at the landfill moving forward. Based on certain concerns raised by CDPHE, the parties determined it was necessary to convert the pending sale to a long-term ground lease under which HRH-470 will continue its efforts to develop the property while constructing a system intended to divert groundwater from infiltrating the landfill waste and lower the leachate level to an elevation acceptable to CDPHE and allow it to then take title to the property. The parties executed a Sixth Amendment to PSA effective October 24, 2024, allowing HRH additional time through June 30, 2025, to obtain Douglas County development approvals. HRH obtained approval of its zoning application and Planned Development from the Douglas Board of County Commissioners on October 8, 2024, and has since submitted a site plan seeking the remaining needed approvals. Douglas County has not yet issued the necessary approval on HRH’s final engineering design that is required to allow HRH to obtain permits and begin construction. The Seventh Amendment is necessary to allow HRH the additional time necessary to obtain the final approvals to begin the project. HRH now anticipates this approval may be obtained by late summer or early fall 2025.
Alternatives: There are no viable alternatives at this time if the Board wants to continue with the disposition of County Line Landfill.
Fiscal Impact: The County is currently paying approximately $250,000+ per year in monitoring and maintenance costs. Executing the Seventh Amendment to PSA will allow the County to shift those costs to HRH once final Douglas County approvals are obtained and the parties execute the ground lease. Rejecting the Seventh Amendment would cause HRH-470 to terminate the PSA and leave the landfill property and its associated annual monitoring and maintenance costs and environmental liability in the hands of the County.
Alignment with Strategic Plan:
☒Be fiscally sustainable
☒Provide essential and mandated service
☒Be community focused
Concurrence: The Facilities and Fleet Department concurs with this request.
Resolution: A copy of the draft resolution is attached.