Agenda - 05-08-2014 - 6a - Laserfiche WebLink

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11 1 developments outside towns, and the rural areas all recycle, though they do recycling 2 differently. She said the towns and the County are poised to sign an agreement for curbside 3 recycling, and this is a result of conversations between staff, town managers, councils and 4 officials. She said this is a good fit for the town and the County, and the agreement appears to 5 be made in good faith. She said the public hearings have affirmed the importance of recycling 6 outside of the towns. She said curbside recycling is good for suburban developments that sit 7 just outside of towns. She asked, rather than funding this with a tax district, why the County 8 does not work with haulers already providing service to the towns, to include the suburban 9 communities for a fee. She said this would not require a special district. She said the County 10 has not respected the way rural households address recycling. She said only a third of those in 11 the rural area use curbside service. She said the curbside with a tax district should be rejected. 12 She said the Commissioners are the only voice that the rural residents have, and she asked 13 that the Board reject this district and re-visit the issue with the rural stakeholders. 14 Quentin Phillips said he lives on Orange Grove Road. He asked for clarification on the 15 revenue generated by the sale of recyclables. He asked why that cannot be self supporting. 16 He asked how this tax can be legal if the residents have not voted on it. He said he pays more 17 taxes in Orange County than he does in Alamance County. 18 David Neal is a member of the Commission for the Environment. He said the 19 commission's interest in this issue is environmental. He said there is benefit in the reduced 20 energy use created through recycling. He said, given the two options, the commission 21 identified the service district as the option that is least disruptive to the existing successful 22 program. He said a subscription service would be inefficient, difficult to manage, and 23 expensive. He agrees that in a real world, curbside recycling would be best in denser areas; 24 but because of the constraints requiring a contiguous district, this does not work. 25 26 Joe Phelps said he is a lifelong resident of Orange County. He said he would also like 27 to see the amount of revenue generated from the sale of recyclables. He said the opt-out 28 service should be an option, and if there is a fee, it should be a flat fee for all participants. He 29 feels the Board is incorrect in thinking that an opt-out program would reduce recycling 30 participation. He questioned why only part of the County was included in the program and why 31 the service was not offered to everyone. He does not believe this should be based upon tax 32 value. 33 Bonnie Hauser said she lives across the street from the proposed district, but she cares 34 about this issue. She said it is apparent that everyone involved cares about waste reduction, 35 but everyone does not do it the same way. She said there are many options that provide choice 36 and good service that have not been explored. She said the service district tax is not a fair or 37 equitable solution for the County. She said she has been supportive of the subscription fee, but 38 it seems there may be an issue of viability with this option. She said there needs to be more 39 time allowed to review the options, and a short term solution needs to be found, while options 40 for a long time solution can be sorted out. She asked the Board to delay all capital expenses, 41 including convenience center upgrades and roll carts until a decision is made on how to handle 42 this service in the long term. 43 Ben Lloyd said he is an Efland resident. He said he understands that this proposed tax 44 would apply to residents and open land, regardless if you create waste or not. He owns several 45 hundred acres of open land that produces no waste, and he feels it is unfair to make him pay a 46 tax for this land. He said the current convenience centers are the best and fairest options. He 47 does not mind paying for his sins and his service, but he resents paying for the sins and 48 services of other people. He said he was taught not to mess with something that is working, 49 and the convenience centers are working.