Changes in Garbage Disposal Move Closer to Reality

Starting in 2011, Greenfield residents could pay slightly more per year for garbage collection, but would no longer be required to pay for drop-offs at the yard.

At a special meeting Thursday evening, the Board of Public Works voted unanimously (4-0) in support of a 5-year contract with John's Disposal Services. Johns, based out of Whitewater, is currently providing similar service to the City of Franklin.

John’s bid was selected over Waste Management and Veolia Environment Services, the city’s current contractor.

“I did check references and they were very positive,” Director of Neighborhood Services Richard Sokol said. “All three firms are all very good firms and very capable of doing this work. The recommendation from my point of view has focused on money.”

The cost per residential unit will increase from $155.71 dollars per year to $162.74, or an additional $7.03.

But the contract is less expensive than what the city has now when the reduction of the state’s recycling aid and the use of dollars from the solid waste reserve account, which were used to moderate the increase in fees from 2010 to 2011, are factored out of the equation.

If the Common Council approves the contract at its Aug. 16 meeting, John's service would begin Jan. 1.

Some things stay the same, change

According to Sokol, residents will see the same schedule of curbside service as they do now. Garbage collection will be weekly, and recyclables will be collected every two weeks. There will also be every-other-week yard waste curbside collection for a 16-week stretch of the year, and Sokol assumed the DPW will continue to collect leaves at the curb each fall.

But there are plenty of changes, according to Sokol. Each residential unit will be provided with a 95-gallon rolling cart for refuse and a 95-gallon rolling cart for recyclables. The carts will be provided by John's.

That means blue recycling bins will no longer be used, nor will individually owned garbage cans or heavy-duty garbage bags.

“We have been told by the industry that the cart system will help control costs,” Sokol said. “Second, our health department and public officials believe the cart system will improve the general sanitation and appearance of our neighborhoods.”

John’s will use brand new, automated trucks to dump the containers. The sides of the new trucks will be available for community service messages, likely to be environmentally related, according to Sokol.

In addition, fees at the drop-off center, now $8 per cubic yard of waste, will be eliminated and the center will be open one more night per week. Starting in January, residents will be able to drop-off anything from recyclables to electronics to yard waste to motor oil for free Tuesday and Thursday evenings and all day Saturday.

“That’s something the mayor and the Board of Public Works has been looking at for awhile,” Sokol said of the elimination of drop-off fees. “We tried to do I through our existing contract but we thought the price was too high.”

Another change is the addition of 50 garbage cans provided by the city in public spaces such as bus stops. The city does not have anything like this now, and the cans will be emptied weekly.

Sokol said the city will also redefine “residential unit” in relation to dumpster service. Only residential buildings that serve four or fewer families will be served under the new contract. Condos will continue to get the service, but larger apartment complexes will have to contract their own service.

“What we found in that experience is larger residential complexes, if they’re smart about it, they can get garbage collection services cheaper than we can provide,” Sokol said “They can probably do it more economically than we can.”

Sokol admits the number of changes will be a lot for residents to digest. That is why the board called a special meeting and is hoping for Common Council approval next week so the education process can begin.

He said, as part of the contract, John’s will also have a webpage that John’s will be required to update in a timely fashion in regards to delays or changes of service.