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MT File photo Tossing your trash in the open air will be a thing of the past for Medford-area residents after today, when the South Stage Landfill closes and Dry Creek Landfill stops accepting waste from the public. A new, enclosed transfer station opens Saturday on Table Rock Road. Nostalgia -- over a landfill? Yes Memories, smells hang heavy as dumps close today By ALBERTO ENRIQUEZ Out with the old will take on a whole new meaning in '99. Rogue Valley residents long accustomed to dumping their trash at the landfill will be taking the whole messy business indoors. A new indoor dumping station opens Saturday on Table Rock Road near Antelope Road. No private hauler has yet to burst into a misty-eyed round of "Auld Lang Syne" over the rotting cabbages, but landfill operators report a surprising level of nostalgia for the public dumping that ends today at both the South Stage and Dry Creek landfills. "You know, people are so attached to the landfill," says Don Cordell, landfill manager for Rogue Waste Systems. "We have families that have been coming for years. They're taking pictures of themselves taking that last load to the landfill." Hard to believe? Believe it, Cordell says. As federal solid waste and safety requirements have evolved over the years, he's seen previous waves of nostalgia waft over the most aromatic real estate in Jackson County. Antique dealers were devastated when public scavenging went the way of the aluminum pull tab. But the fear of accidents and liability put public scavenging off limits years ago. Cordell's eyes roll as he remembers the first day that a small area was set aside for salable items. "Someone had left a velvet Elvis painting with some garbage on it," he says. "I said, `Come on, who's going to pay for this?' No sooner did the words get out of my mouth than some guy walked over and said, `Hey, I'll give you 5 bucks for that."' Memories may linger, but seagulls and ravens by the thousands will have to find their snacks elsewhere. The South Stage landfill is closing for good. Dry Creek remains open, although not to the public. Folks who insist on hauling their own waste will take it to the Public Solid Waste Transfer Station and Recycling Center at 8001 Table Rock Road. Recyclers will deposit their glass, wood, mixed plastics, milk jugs, newspapers, office paper and other recyclables at another corner of the 50-acre facility. Recycling will be outdoors at first, but a roof is under construction. Waste dumping will take place inside the solid waste building, where up to 16 cars and pickups at a time will be able to back up and offload onto the concrete floor. Periodically, an elephant-sized Caterpillar front-end loader will lower a thick rubber-edged blade and scrape the garbage away like the mother of all squeegees. The waste will then be crammed onto a conveyor belt that can fill a 130-cubic-yard semi-trailer (about 100 pickup loads) in 20 minutes. Cordell says the 16-bay arrangement should easily accommodate the typical traffic of 300 cars and pickups a day. On peak summer days, when use doubles, there may be some waiting. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA