Minutes 01-23-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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asked why curbside pickup is being provided to a community that still has to haul its own trash. She would rather see the money allocated to this program spent on improving the community. She said if the Board does decide to offer this service, she would ask for the subscription option to allow residents to opt out. Tony Blake lives in a rural community in Bingham Township. He said the problem is that everyone wants people to recycle more. He said people recycle less when garbage and recycling are separated, so the best way to encourage recycling is to have those two things together. He said this means that the trash needs to be picked up too; otherwise people should just use the convenience centers. Don O'Leary lives in Bingham Township. He said he preferred to use the convenience centers. He does not understand why the Board of County Commissioners needs to force this proposal down citizens' throats. Carroll Hawkins lives in Cedar Grove Township and has a very long driveway. He cannot imagine having a roll cart. He said from an equity standpoint, it is not fair to him to be charged a tax when it is not convenient to use the service, and he does not plan to use it. Commissioner McKee addressed Gayle Wilson and said that his department does an excellent job. He complimented the solid waste department on the excellent recycling rate. He said the abstract states that up to 14,000 roll carts will be purchased for the rural areas. He said if it is assumed that many folks will not use the service, there will be a surplus of carts. He said there is a cost of$212,000 for the carts. He said that a tax district with 20,000 parcels has a potential to have up to 8000 unused carts, and this is not a good use of funds. Commissioner McKee said he will concede that there may be a 25 percent reduction in recycling if the County goes to a subscription service. He said rural curbside is only 17 percent of the total recycling in Orange County, and if the 25 percent is applied to this rural rate and then extrapolated across the total volume of recycling, it brings the possible reduction down to 3 or 4 percent. Commissioner McKee said, with the tax concept, there will be 694 exempt properties that will not pay tax though they can continue to receive services. He said the possible number of medium and lower income residents that will be paying a tax for a service they may not need or want is an equity issue for him. Commissioner Price said she would like to see some comparable information and data showing the scenario if people in rural areas are not required to pay for pickup and instead use the convenience centers. She said people in the rural areas do recycle, and she has seen it at her convenience center. She questioned whether the Board needs to have curbside pick-up to accomplish their goals of recycling. She questions whether the Board is justifying the means or the end. She feels that the County should be giving citizens options, and the option of"opt- out" should be considered. She said there is no information on the effect of a subscription service, and she would like to see this. Commissioner Pelissier said the Board does not have a lot of information at this meeting. She said part of the problem is that there is no good data on many of the things being considered. She thought the purpose tonight was to decide whether or not to have a public hearing. She does not want to make a decision before a public hearing is held. She said the public needs to receive the big picture on this issue. Commissioner Rich agreed with Commissioner Pelissier. She said that, because this is not a public hearing, many people who are in favor of the tax just sent in emails instead of attending. She urged the Board to move forward with what is in the abstract.