Lockport NY

The city has a new website up and running for garbage and refuse collection:

City of Lockport Curbside Recycling & Refuse

 Also both the Buffalo News and LUSJ reported on Modern Disposal being selected as the contractor for the next three years.

More than 20 years after most other communities in Niagara County, the City of Lockport will have curbside recycling service, starting in September.

The Common Council voted Wednesday in favor of a five-year contract with Modern Disposal of Lewiston to pick up the city’s garbage and empty its new recycling bins, ending generations of city-provided garbage service.

The system will be funded by user fees, which won’t be determined until residents respond to a mailing asking which of the three available sizes of garbage cans they want...

I missed this article reported by the Buffalo News comparing the systems and costs of the town and city privatized refuse collection.

And the Buffalo News also reported on the "concerns" of Mayoral Candidate  Pilot and Mayor Candidate and current Alderman Jack Smith. I respect Smith's pointed concern (although I find it hard to nail down initial costs when we all have options plus a $20 swing per year should not be too much to handle) but Pilot's approach came off as fear mongering and staging for the election run in fall.

For those who want answers directly answered, the is a Q&A session tonight with 5th Ward Alderman Genewick Instead of assuming the sky is falling, drop in for some answers.

UPDATE 7/18/11:

The Buffalo News reported on the billing (one this year for the additional 2 months of unplanned city collection and one for the start of the new privatized system) and the fines for not following the system.

I don't like the automatic pick up of "mistakes" and subsequent fine. If anything, leave the trash that was wrong with a standard note with items checked off so the property owner can learn and let the driver note the house. If it is a persistent problem then go ahead an fine the owner.

The law will be up for public comment at an upcoming session. If you want your voice heard on the topic show up and speak out.

6/30/11

The LUSJ reported on some of the costs.

By turning refuse collection duties over to the private sector, the City of Lockport should save upwards of $10 million in tax money over 10 years...

6/29/11

The LUSJ reported on the upcoming garbage system that is expected to be voted on next week.

A week from today, the Common Council is set to OK a contract with a private hauling company to collect all garbage in the city.

The vote is historic for several reasons, not the least of which is the city will get out of the refuse collection business and, over time, reduce its employment roll by nine.

Privatization also will bring curbside recycling service to residents, finally, about 20 years after it was introduced in every town around the city.

Also a pretty big deal, the trash pickup program that the city commissioned will relieve city taxpayers of the burden of paying for everyone’s garbage pickup based on their property value.

The new “variable cart” program invites all property owners to help set their own refuse disposal costs, based on how much they throw away versus recycle....

 A nice primer Q&A is also given. And remember to get as much big stuff out in the next few weeks before you'll have to pay to get rid of it, or hold onto it to put out one per month.

The Bufalo News reported last week that the change over to provate garbage collection is now delayed until mid-August.

The start of privatized garbage pickup and curbside recycling in the city has been pushed back to mid-August, Mayor Michael W. Tucker said at Wednesday’s Common Council meeting.
Bids from garbage haulers for the service are due Friday, but Corporation Counsel John J. Ottaviano said the bids will be secret until the Council awards a contract.

The bidding is being conducted under an alternative procedure sanctioned by Section 120-w of the state’s General Municipal Law.

That process envisions negotiations with bidders before and after the offers are submitted, rather than the normal sealed-bid process where the low bidder gets the job unless the municipality can prove a problem with its bid.

The bid opening has been delayed at least twice as the three prospective bidders — Modern Disposal, Waste Management and Allied Waste Services — have volleyed questions and issues back and forth with the city....

 If you have not started yet, now is the best time to get rid of all of the crap you have sitting around and in your property. Don't wait until its too late.

I'm hoping the garbage is sent out with the water 4x anually.

The Buffalo News reported that the garbage bids are to opened on May 20th.

The final Request for Proposal is at eLockport as are the original documents and addendums that were driven by feedback from the potential sevice providers.

The Buffalo News and LUSJ reported on a trash system meeting last night.

The city’s new privatized garbage disposal system won’t start until at least July 1, the Common Council learned Wednesday.

Dawn M. Timm, the laid-off former Niagara County solid-waste coordinator who has been working on Lockport’s plan, told the aldermen that the three prospective haulers thought the city’s plan to start in April was unrealistic.

The process, which began with the haulers being asked to submit comments on the plan’s structure before bidding, now calls for the final draft of the request for proposals to be posted by Feb. 28. The waste haulers will have until March 30 to submit bids.

“We’ll take about three weeks to chew over that and enter the negotiation phase,” said Timm, who is continuing to work on the city’s project as a volunteer.

She said the contract should be awarded in mid-May, and the first of the city’s five garbage routes will be privatized about six weeks later....

 Notable is where the "large item disposal" is heading:

One “bulk” item pickup per month, per property, to be included in the fee each property is charged for regular pickup. Bulk items are things such as a chair or other large item set out in addition to the trash can; the definition and maximum size/weight of a “bulk” item is also still being worked out.

•A “special circumstances” pickup, to be paid for by property owners in addition to their quarterly refuse fees as needed, for dumping of trash including construction-and-demolition debris. Basically, the property owner would contact the hauler and make arrangements for disposing of special debris alongside weekly trash; but the special debris wouldn’t be picked up unless the owner paid for the service.

The haulers discouraged an idea in the preliminary RFP, for a spring cleaning/”amnesty” month during which property owners could put as much trash out to the curb as they like. The city couldn’t estimate how many parcels would participate or how much would get thrown out, so the haulers said they’d have to guess themselves how many laborers and what kinds of vehicles, garbage trucks or bulldozers, would be needed, put a price on that extra service and write it into the contract

There should be a cost effective way to handle large items. Instead of one any time per any month and a big free-for-all month why not just the beginning of every month? It would seem to be more cost effective than special trips year round. Construction debris should still be the separate responsibility of the home owner or contractor. What else could there be to worry about on a large scale?

12/09/10

The Buffalo News reported on the feedback from the prospective bidders.

Three garbage haulers warned the city Wednesday that it needs to become more specific about what it wants in a privatized garbage and recycling program if wants a good price...

12/07/10

Some items to note from the 69 page Refuse and Recycling RFP:

Page 27:
A maximum of one bulk item per customer per month (i.e. refrigerant free white goods).

Page 27:
The Contractor shall include an annual Spring Clean‐up Program that the City will elect to participate in each year. This service shall take place during the month of April and provide for the curbside collection and disposal of large and bulky items not ordinarily collected, without limitation, including items that would not/could not fit within the designated refuse totes. If the City exercises the option to host such an annual event, the City will publicize the collection dates for each area of the City.

Page 28:
Location for Service: For regular service, all containers shall be placed by the residential Customer at the curb of the residence on the day of scheduled collection by 6:00am unless otherwise agreed between the City and the Contractor. Each refuse cart must face the street (with lift bar facing the street) with additionally tagged item(s) adjacent to the refuse tote.

Page 31:
The City recognizes the costs associated with providing weekly curbside recycling collection; therefore the city will entertain proposals for both weekly curbside and twice monthly curbside recycling collection.

Page 36:
The Contractor shall be responsible for the uninterrupted collection of recyclables at the curbside of Multiple Unit, Commercial or Industrial parcels that have special “Commercial Contracts” for City Multi‐unit (4 and greater) and Commercial accounts that are not located on “Commercial Streets”.

Page 37:
All proposers are required to submit a proposal that provides program subscribers with an additional option to dispose of additional materials that are too large to fit in a refuse container, but less than 50 lbs in total weight. The City anticipates that the new refuse tote program may occasionally require users to exceed their maximum disposal limit, therefore affording program users a convenient option to dispose of additional refuse. Each additional item or bag will require each user to purchase an additional tag to cover the disposal costs associated with the additional items they wish to dispose

Appendix A was some interesting maps of residential ve non-residential. Appendix D has a nice break down of occupied city parcels and all buildings with 4 or greater residential units. I'll post both images in a separate general info post.

12/06/10

Click here to see more...

The Buffalo News reported:

In seeking bids for privatized garbage collection, the city will allow negotiations with bidders after seeing their numbers but before a contract is put up for a vote.

Dawn M. Timm, Niagara County solid waste coordinator and a member of the city’s garbage committee, said last week the unusual process will be used to try to hold costs down for the proposed new garbage carts or totes the city intends to issue to each household.

“It’s the same route the City of Buffalo went,” Timm said. “We’re looking for the best way to finance the carts.”

Mayor Michael W. Tucker said the cost of a new garbage system is one of the questions that must be answered before the Common Council can vote on a 2011 city budget...

The last conversation on the topic was here.

The Buffalo News reported:

The Common Council decided Wednesday to seek proposals from garbage collection and recycling companies using a format that would give residents their choice of three sizes of city-sanctioned garbage cans.

President Richelle J. Pasceri said the bidding envisions a system of “utility-based billing,” whereby the cost of garbage collection would be taken out of the regular property tax and billed separately to each property owner — including those who are tax-exempt.

However, the bill would vary based on the size of garbage tote each resident chooses: 35, 65 or 95 gallons, Pasceri said. The figures will depend on the prices quoted by the contractors servicing what is called the “variable cart” plan.

This is the plan that I prefer. The uniform totes look much better as the curb, the built in lids keep the trash in place and each residence pays relative to how much they dispose of. All I'd ask for is a dark green or black color to look nice at the curb and alongside the house. The extra recycling tote will be a PIA at first but I can vouch that a good portion of our trash now is cardboard, etc.

I also agree with Jack Smith in getting the garbage responsibilities out of the city's long term costs:

Alderman Jack L. Smith Jr., D- 2nd Ward, said he wants to privatize collection because the city won the right to do so in the new contract approved late last year with the city’s blue-collar union, which includes garbage workers.

“That’s what the whole contract agreement was for,” he said

.

LUSJ article today HOUSING COURT: Trash ticket numbers spike mentions an increase in the number of tickets issued for early garbage placement (more than 24hrs prior to pickup).

On a weekly basis, prosecutor Mike Norris is handling proceedings against property owners written up by Bob Turner, Mayor Michael Tucker’s community aide whose charge is to stop the city from looking “trashy.”

Turner has enforced the trash ban vigorously since he took the job last summer; in recent months, anywhere from two to two dozen cases per week are turning up in City Court. Tucker thinks the numbers should reassure, not disturb, residents.

“If we’re talking about 10, 20 cases (a week) — that’s a small number in the scheme of things. Those numbers say the system is working,” he said.

The ban on early trash set-out has been enforced at Tucker’s urging since 2005, when the Common Council amended existing law to allow on-the-spot citation and fines for convicted violators.

I'm curious if tickets are also filed for not removing empty trash cans. On my street initial garbage placement never appears to be out of line but there a couple properties that like to ignore carrying the emptied cans back to the house. Sometimes it is several days later before they leave the curb.

LUSJ also gave an update yesterday on the city recycling program progress: CITY OF LOCKPORT: Recycling plan is taking shape.

Members of the all-volunteer recycling committee, appointed last year by Mayor Michael Tucker, on Monday reached some consensus on the type of program they’d like to see for the city. Among recommendations they’ll make to the Common Council:

• Recycling should be single-stream, meaning no separation of plastic, glass and metal is required by residents.

• Collections should be weekly and should be available to both residents and businesses.

• Collection should be by city workers using city equipment, not a private company. The city should provide residences with one 18-gallon bin per living unit and one 95-gallon wheeled “tote” per commercial enterprise. Undecided, as of Monday, is which
category three-or-more unit apartment houses fall into.

• Public works should pick an area — a ward or garbage route — to launch a “pilot study.” Since the model has city employees taking on a new chore, kinks in the effort will have to be worked out by trial and error. Early bets were on a pilot in the 4th or 5th wards, which participate most in the city’s existing paper/cardboard recycling
program, but Dawn Walczak, Niagara County’s director of environmental/solid waste management, recommended a pilot in whatever area has a good mix of residential and business occupation. “Pick a challenging route so you’re prepared,” she said.

• Recycling will have to be voluntary, not mandatory, by residents and businesses. Committee chairman Jeff Tracy is inclined to draw a hard line with businesses — either they’ll recycle or the city shouldn’t pick up their trash anymore, he suggested — but the city currently doesn’t have the option to pick and choose whose trash it’ll collect. Absent formation of a garbage district, everybody’s trash gets picked up, Superintendent of Streets Mike Hoffman said

Buffalo News article on it here.

I'm curious on the reasoning behind making it a city operation instead of bidding the whole thing out every several years to a contractor. The ~250K start-up costs mention a new truck, containers, education etc. Then there is the mention of the annual costs of operation as being $54k including a mechanical operator's job and that it is a wash with today's tipping rates. I'd rather a system where no additional city employees are added. I'm all for keeping legacy costs as low as possible since one never knows what the future holds and its a bonus to be able to cut back when times call for it.

Living in the 4th ward I'd more than happy to be a guinea pig for the program.

_________________________________

City of Lockport Garbage FAQ

Old recycling post:Recycling Program Update (2009-02-02)

A Buffalo News article gives an update on the recycling program process in the city:

Pasceri said that at a meeting last week, the committee discussed using one ward for a pilot program “to get the kinks worked out” before expanding collections citywide.

Mayor Michael W. Tucker said he was willing to consider that, but he said, “We’re committing ourselves to a full-blown curbside program.”

The original goal called for putting the program into operation this spring. Tucker, however, said that might not be possible until summer.

I suppose that an initial pilot program in a single ward is not unreasonable. I'm anxious to finally have a full-scale curb side service. I am stuck between feeling bad about throwing things out, yet not having enough will to put the effort in to do other wise with the recyclables.

Decisions have to be made about the size and cost of recycling bins and how the city will inform residents about what to recycle and what will not be accepted.

“Each company has its own standards. The more they take, the less you have to educate,” said Pasceri, R-1st Ward.

I'd think a piece of paper provided with the tote would suffice quite well for a majority of residents. This would be especially true for a non-sort system. I'd also hope for a version of it to be posted up at eLockport. Use special meetings etc as needed.