Parishioners who attended the meeting were very vocal in their distaste for the vote.
"I think it is shameful," said a flustered Q.T. Nguyen, a member of Holy Vietnamese Martyrs Church since it began in 2003. "If the station was next to Mr. Bannister’s house, he would think differently."
"How can we have a waste station right next to the house of God?" he asked aloud.
Chi Nguyen, a parishioner for four years, expressed her concern about the health of the children at the church.
"We believe in the child’s future," she said.
Surrounding business owners were also present and equally distraught.
Blake Dexter, who owns nearly 1.2 million square feet of office and industrial space near the proposed waste transfer station, underlined that the decision went against the recommendations of county planning professionals.
He fears that the Fortune 100 and international companies who currently occupy the space will consider leaving the property if a waste transfer station is built next door.
Dexter also said that he was concerned that the proposition was motioned for approval by the District 1 commissioner because he felt she did not have time to review the issue.
Lasseter just joined the Gwinnett Board of Commissioners in January.
The public debate began last November when Father Tran brought more than 600 people with him to a planning hearing to voice their opposition to the proposition. The meeting ended with a recommendation by county planners to deny the requests for rezoning and a special use permit.
(Story continues below)
Subscribe to our daily newsletter
The developer, Lancaster Enterprises, represented by the Mahaffey, Pickens, Tucker law firm, plans to construct two buildings on the nine-acre property. The company claims the buildings will look like office buildings and that all operations will be conducted inside.
However, Holy Vietnamese Martyrs parishioners, as well as surrounding business owners, expressed their concern about air pollution, dangerous truck traffic and increased noise levels that are sure to accompany a solid waste transfer station.
A public hearing on the proposition to rezone the land was held in December before county commissioners. More than 1,000 protestors showed up, filling the auditorium and the halls outside only to learn that the decision would be tabled until Feb. 3.
Father Tran and the church community knew there had to be some action taken, so he and several parishioners reached out to the surrounding Catholic community in other Gwinnett County parishes.
The mission formed 10 groups to visit neighboring Gwinnett County churches to share information.
"This idea actually originated from a comment I overheard that there are approximately 24,000 Catholic families who live in Gwinnett County," said C. C. Nguyen, a parish leader who arranged the visitations.