The Los Angeles City Council rejected a proposal Friday to extend a contract to dump trash at Sunshine Canyon Landfill, raising the prospect that residents could face millions of dollars in additional costs to dispose of refuse.
The council voted 7 to 4 for the proposed five-year contract extension with dump operator Browning-Ferris Industries, falling one vote short of the eight needed to pass. The city's leaders have been wrestling with what to do about the San Fernando Valley landfill for weeks and are scheduled to vote on the emotional issue a second time Tuesday.
Councilwoman Janice Hahn, who opposed the contract Friday, said she is open to being persuaded that the contract is justified, and two council members who missed Friday's meeting are expected to be present at the second vote.
The decision was the first City Council defeat for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who argued in a letter to council members that the city had no alternative and would still have to send trash to Sunshine, which could cost $17 million more a year without a contract.
After the vote, Villaraigosa urged the council to reconsider when it votes again next week.
"Extending the contract at Sunshine Canyon is a tough choice, but it is the right choice for now while we work to find viable alternatives," he said in a statement.
To keep the contract alive, BFI District Manager Greg Loughnane said, he extended the deadline for city approval, which was set to expire Friday, until Aug. 19.
Still, Councilman Greig Smith, the leading opponent of the contract, said he expects the decision to stand.
"For far too long, the residents of Granada Hills have endured the unfair burden of being the dumping grounds for the entire city," said Smith, whose district includes a portion of the landfill in Granada Hills.
Smith predicted that the decision would force the city to expand recycling, build waste-to-energy plants and find locations for dumping trash that are away from residential neighborhoods.
Along with Smith and Hahn, Alex Padilla and Jan Perry voted against extending the contract, which expires next July.
But others, including Councilman Jack Weiss, said the city has no inexpensive alternative to Sunshine Canyon for dumping the 3,600 tons of trash generated by Los Angeles each day.
"It was breathtakingly irresponsible," Weiss said of the vote against the contract.
