According to County Mayor Tim Stribling, the new solid waste transfer station and is on track to open to the public by March.

"The transfer station is coming along great. The building is going up, and the steel frame has been erected. They are putting on the sheet metal, and the foundation for the scales has been laid. The pad is poured for the office next to the big building. Everything is running on schedule. Hopefully by March we'll be operational," Stribling said.

The mayor’s comments came after Seventh District County commissioner Larry Summers inquired as to the status of the project at last week’s at last week’s regular meeting of the county commission.

"We will be closing down the Class I cell after we're up and running with the transfer station. The rest of the Class I cell will be turned into a Class III/IV landfill. The permit has already been sent in to the state requesting the change from a Class I to the Class III/IV. A new two-lane road that goes straight on out from Moog Boulevard has been cut, and the electric poles are set. Gas and sewer lines have been run. The city still has to run the water down to the new road, but it is taking shape," the mayor said.

A Class III/IV cell is designated for non-household solid waste. Household refuse will be hauled to the Smith County landfill for disposal after the solid waste transfer station is up and running.

The commission approved a measure in August to enter into a five-year contract with Smith County to take DeKalb's solid waste for $29 a ton. The commission has not yet made a decision on whether to haul the trash to Smith County or to farm the transportation of DeKalb’s trash out to another company.

Elk Mountain Construction of Cookeville was awarded the contract to build the transfer station in the Smithville Industrial Park on Highway 70 east behind the Tenneco Automotive building. The bid on construction of the facility was $1,308,092, with a deductive alternate of $425,077 from the base bid for road work.