SUN VALLEY : Greenbelt Suggested for Quarry Area

A plan to beautify 300 acres in Sun Valley now occupied by four massive pits has been suggested by a landscape architect.

The pits, used as quarries and a landfill, would be transformed into a giant greenbelt connecting lakes, an industrial park and other improvements from the edge of Hansen Dam to Tuxford Street in Sun Valley.

A park with a man-made waterfall and amphitheater are included, according to Milton Decker, also a general contractor, who spent four years developing the proposal as part of his studies at UCLA Extension’s four-year landscape architecture program.

“If we’re going to progress, let’s not just make holes in the ground . . . make our bucks and walk away,” said Decker, a Sylmar resident.

Three of the pits are owned by CalMat Co. and the fourth, which contains Bradley Landfill, is owned by W. M. X. Technologies Inc., formerly Waste Management Co.

Paula Becker, a spokeswoman for W. M. X. Technologies, said the company has preliminary plans for its 209-acre site once the landfill closes in about 10 years. Those plans include a gas recovery plant to recover methane gas from the landfill.