The City of Waynesboro landfill was closed in 2003 in accordance with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality requirements. The 107-acre property includes approximately 17 acres composed of the closed landfill. The goal of the City is to provide public access to this area for passive recreational uses and the development of a trail system for walking and mountain biking. A decade after the closure the City began taking steps to this end, utilizing the services of the Community Design Assistance Center from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University to help develop a master plan for the development of ’Sunset Park’. 

In the last several years the City resolved to recognize the property as a park which would allow it to pursue grant funding for the creation of the park. In 2018, the City of Waynesboro received a VDOT Recreation Access Grant to make vital upgrades to the existing gravel road leading up to the top of the landfill. After numerous setbacks including COVID. The project is now back on track with construction having started in early  2023. State and Local Recovery Funds authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) are funding the improvements at the top of the old landfill. Below is a rendering of the work these funds are supporting.