City of Stuart’s Dirty Little Secret: the Old Landfill sent
Article Posted on April 24, 2025
Note: It is our goal at One Martin to provide reliable, fact-based information so citizens can be better informed about our government and community.
Dear Friends,
City of Stuart Commissioners have been making some illogical decisions lately. A recent one was on March 10 when they voted to end negotiations with Ashley Capital for the purchase of the old, contaminated 47-acre city landfill for $1.3 million. Why should you care? Plenty of reasons.
But to understand, we first must look back to a brief history of this landfill.
Early Days (1950-1962): Martin County owned and operated the landfill.
City Takes Over (1962): The responsibility shifted to the City of Stuart.
End of Dumping (1980-1987): The landfill stopped accepting general waste in 1980 but continued to take wastewater sludge until 1987. It was officially closed to further dumping that year.
Ongoing Costs (1987-Present): Even though it's closed, the City of Stuart still uses a small portion for yard waste transfer. Crucially, the city remains legally responsible for any environmental issues associated with the landfill.
Not only is the landfill not producing any jobs or generating taxes, it sits there, underutilized, as a reminder of poor waste disposal practices. In fact, the city’s landfill is designated as a brownfieldsite, which is generally defined as a property where expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants. The city is also responsible for closing the landfill, which will require significant costs and without redevelopment there will be no new economic benefit to offset those costs.
Photo credit: Keith Burbank/TCPALM
An Experienced Company had a Vision for the Redevelopment of the Landfill.
Ashley Capital, a 40-year-old company with a solid reputation for successfully developing and operating properties for industrial uses was interested in transforming the city’s landfill (a contaminated, blighted property) from a liability to an asset. Ashley Capital has significant expertise in redeveloping brownfields – taking an underutilized or less desirable property and turning it into a productive economic space.
Ashley Capital saw potential where others saw a problem. They proposed to take on the challenge and risk of cleaning up and redeveloping the old landfill site. Their plan involved:
Environmental Cleanup: Ashley Capital, with their specialized expertise, would handle the complex task of remediating/capping the contaminated land, addressing issues like elevated methane and other pollutants, and securing landfill closure status with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
Redevelopment: They envisioned building approximately 420,000 square feet of modern, flexible Class A light-industrial space for small to mid-size tenants. This type of space has been identified as being in demand within the city but currently unavailable.
Why Approving the Project Made Perfect Sense for Stuart:
The proposed project offered lots of compelling benefits for the City of Stuart and its taxpayers, making its rejection by City Commissioners a significant missed opportunity:
Turning a Liability into an Asset: The landfill is a financial drain on the city, requiring ongoing environmental monitoring costs and undefined closure costs. Ashley Capital's proposal offered a pathway to transform this liability into an eventually revenue-generating asset through real property and tangible personal property taxes.
Environmental Remediation at No Cost to the City: The developer would have shouldered the significant upfront financial burden and logistical complexity of addressing the contaminated site. This would have relieved the city of its responsibility and the associated expenses for landfill closure.
Economic Boost and Job Creation: The proposed light-industrial space would have attracted expanding and new businesses and created local jobs - reducing poverty and unemployment, increasing income, decreasing the need to leave the city for work, and diversifying the local economy.
Meeting Market Demand: The developer identified a lack of comparable Class A light-industrial space within Stuart, indicating a potential for success and strong occupancy rates for the redeveloped property.
Community Benefits and Partnerships: The project aimed to create career pathways and employment partnerships, further integrating the development into the city and the greater Martin County community. The site location within one mile from the center of the City of Stuart provided great synergy with new workforce development programming at the Greater Stuart Boys & Girls Club and Project LIFT of East Stuart.
Proven Expertise: Ashley Capital has a strong track record of successfully redeveloping complex brownfield sites, including former landfills. Their experience and financial stability makes them a credible partner for such a challenging project. Their due diligence and investment to date have demonstrated a commitment to a long-term, positive relationship with the city.
In the end, Ashley Capital’s proposal represented a rare win-win-win: addressing environmental problems that will benefit the community, new jobs for local residents, and a long-dormant liability transformed into an economic asset. Instead, the City of Stuart walked away.
It’s a decision that deserves public scrutiny.
If you’re wondering why Stuart leaders turned down a plan that checked all the right boxes - ask them. Better yet, tell them it’s time to turn the page on the city’s landfill legacy and start building a better future.
