Agenda - 04-01-2014 - 6a - Laserfiche WebLink

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16 1 Ken Robinson lives on Old Greensboro Road. He said he has tried to use curbside 2 service, but there is no space in the right of way for bins, and it does not work for him. He 3 asked what problem the Board is trying to solve. He said he uses the convenience center and 4 sees lots of people using the recycling center. He said he takes his recyclables when he takes 5 his trash, and this is quicker than carrying it to the street and bringing the bins back. He thinks 6 the service district is a bad idea. 7 8 Jan Sassman said the issue before them is whether or not to proceed with a public 9 hearing. He encouraged the Board to vote yes on this, and he said he will defer his comments 10 until that hearing. 11 12 Terri Buckner said she appreciates the solid waste staff, and she appreciates her 13 recycling being picked up. She is here to support this proposal and to encourage the Board to 14 move forward with a public hearing. She said that a subscription service will reduce the 15 recycling rate significantly. She said there are many people in the County who do not have long 16 driveways and would use the service. She noted that she lives far from a convenience center 17 and she appreciates the pickup service. 18 19 Maria Tadd said she lives in Bingham Township. She thanked Commissioner Gordon 20 for her years of service. She said she has lived in Orange County for 20 years and 21 Commissioner Gordon is the finest Commissioner the County has ever had. She said 22 environmental concerns are important to her and Commissioner Gordon has been a steward of 23 the environment and a rational voice at the table. 24 Maria Tadd said her love for the environment is what brings her here today, and she 25 feels that curbside pick-up is a colossal waste of money and is bad for the environment. She 26 said she lives on the corner of two private roads with a total of 14 households, and only one 27 family uses this service. She said recycling must be driven to a designated area, and it is much 28 easier to just drive another 1.5 miles to the recycling center. She said everyone has to drive to 29 the recycling center anyway, so there is no benefit to curbside service when only recyclables 30 are collected. She said the fact that Orange County has been ranked number 1 in the state is 31 testimony to the fact that people are using the convenience centers. She said the elderly 32 population in the rural buffer is increasing, and having to carry the bins to your car and possibly 33 navigate stairs is a hazard for these people. She said the roll carts pose an issue for people 34 like her with long driveways. She said the recycling trucks leave a large carbon footprint, knock 35 down road signs, create ruts in the shoulders, and are a traffic hazard. She asked why 36 curbside pickup is being provided to a community that still has to haul its own trash. She would 37 rather see the money allocated to this program spent on improving the community. She said if 38 the Board does decide to offer this service, she would ask for the subscription option to allow 39 residents to opt out. 40 41 Tony Blake lives in a rural community in Bingham Township. He said the problem is that 42 everyone wants people to recycle more. He said people recycle less when garbage and 43 recycling are separated, so the best way to encourage recycling is to have those two things 44 together. He said this means that the trash needs to be picked up too; otherwise people should 45 just use the convenience centers. 46 47 Don O'Leary lives in Bingham Township. He said he preferred to use the convenience 48 centers. He does not understand why the Board of County Commissioners needs to force this 49 proposal down citizens' throats. 50