Minutes 03-21-2013 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Frank Clifton said some of the educational efforts will stay as is and some won't. He said the issues are curbside recycling and multi-family recycling. He said the programs between governments will be discussed, but much depends on the course of action taken. He said the service district gives the county the greatest number of options to continue all services and perhaps justify expansion. This will only occur if the towns opt in to participate. He said that the reason for the year option was to give communities the chance to sort through options. He said the reserves fee is substantial enough to fund the greater portion of the next fiscal year. Council Member Jim Ward said he hopes the county and town look beyond costs and saving money, because this is a great program. He does not feel the current customer service can be duplicated by someone who is not an invested part of the community. He said the county's leadership in recycling is so great and he questions the implication of moving to franchise. He does not want to see quality of service and the rate of recycling lost in the shuffle. He said he feels the county manager's proposals and the town's reactions bode poorly for quality of service. Town Manager Roger Stancil said it was the three town managers' opinion that the same level of service would be able to be achieved for less cost, because of density and the ability to integrate the program with pay as you throw and other collections. He said solid waste is a big core service and there are some real ways to gain efficiency. He said he is not advocating for anything at this point. Chair Jacobs referenced the legislative ruling from the State Supreme Court on Lanvale Properties LLC versus Cabarrus County. He said if you read comments from State Legislators further restricting counties, this case is cited as part of the rationale. Council Member Lee Starrow said he gives thumbs up to the pay as you throw option. He said there is something very unsatisfying about a voluntary program, and he feels that the final two options the Manager laid out seem to be the most successful. Chair Jacobs said he agrees with Commissioner Rich and Council Member Jim Ward. He said that it seems that the county and the towns are not planning together and he is disappointed. He asked why the county is not part of the conversation about the transfer station. He questioned why the elected officials are not meeting together to figure out joint solutions rather than waiting to see what other jurisdictions are doing. He asked how a comprehensive system can be achieved if everyone is operating in different realms. He is willing to meet with other elected officials about this. He said the reason solid waste has been so successful is because elected officials in the past made decisions to do solid waste together and set an aggressive goal. He urged his colleagues to plan more together. He said SWAB does not have a charge at this point. He said that a short term charge could be developed to allow meetings and development of a new inter-local agreement. Mayor Kleinschmidt said there is some tension here because this is a transition point in a process that had previously worked so well. He said it is in the interest of all of the towns, which have limited their growth but expanded their numbers, to look at the alternatives to create efficiency. He said it is easier to pick up recycling and solid waste in high density areas. He said, with regard the countywide option, it would be unwise not to know what the opportunity, cost and trade-offs would be when marrying urban and rural service. Chair Jacobs said he is not sure that equal effort is being put into looking at the options. He said he understands that it is reasonable to question assumptions in this transition period, and to look at what is most cost efficient. He does not see the same effort going into investigating how to work together in reaching goals. Mayor Kleinschmidt thanked Frank Clifton for always including this as an option and he said he fully expects the manager and the Board to come up with solutions incorporating the