Lockport NY

The debate begins again with Garbage 2.0. We shall she what a new year with a new council makeup and new union rules gives us. The Buffalo News and the LUSJ reported on the first committee meeting.

The committee is back together after a several-month hiatus, begun when the Common Council cut proposed funding for recycling service out of the 2010 city budget. The proposal at the time, hiring Modern Recycling to handle recyclables only, while city crews continued handling trash disposal, was considered unaffordable. The Council cut proposed funding to reduce the size of the property tax increase that it was eyeing.

Since then, the city struck a deal with its AFSCME workers, allowing it to privatize refuse collection services entirely. On the belief recycling should be more affordable if it’s bundled with trash collection by one vendor, price-checking that option will be one of the committee’s tasks this year, Tucker said.

The committee also is charged with examining the garbage “district” concept, in which all users pay a fee for service rather than collection being financed from property taxes.

 I'd be in for the district with the choice in tote size and price. I'd expect to see the deletion in the budget though. Long term it will be nice to move a section of the budget off the city employee payroll.

To have some immediate impact for the better, committee chairman Jeff Tracy suggested, the city ought to have a Web site devoted to local refuse dos and don’ts. He suggested “lockportgarbage.com” as a place where residents can turn to know what they can and can’t do under current law; and learn more about current recycling options. 

 There is already a website called www.elockport.com . All relevant information should be there. Not just FAQ's like garbage but documents for public meetings (zoning and planning boards, law changes, etc.) If it is in the public interest, it should be there.

Buffalo News reporting an Electronics Drop-off this Sat:

An electronic waste recycling day is scheduled from 10 a. m. to 2 p. m. Saturday in the parking lot of the Niagara County Courthouse, Park Avenue and Hawley Street.

The free event is sponsored by the county Environmental Management Council and Public Works Department and by the City of Lockport Recycling Committee. Items not being taken Saturday include microwaves, vacuum cleaners and other household appliances; light bulbs; dehumidifiers and fans; yard equipment; and gas powered equipment.

The event will double as a donation site for clothing and nonperishable food items for Community Missions.

 A great way to dispose of that old 14" CRT computer monitor taking up space in the attic.

...with a 1.7% increase in the tax rate. Stories here: LUSJ / Buffalo News. Cut were some empty positions, recycling program initiation and other line items. The city is using a third of its surplus  ($1.1) million to offset the increase in employee pay rates and pensions. This $1.1 million will need to be made up in next year's budget (2011).


LUSJ notes that Mr Chapman and Mr Smith, running for ward seats, were pretty vocal about it not being enough.

The budgets drew criticism from a couple of opposition candidates for Council. Jack Smith, candidate for 2d Ward alderman, and Andrew Chapman, candidate for 4th Ward alderman, both said the Council “failed” residents by approving spending plans containing any tax increase at all.

Ahead of the vote, Smith told the aldermen he hoped they would “think first about whether you’ve given your all to getting it down to zero. ... If you vote for an increase, I really think you haven’t done your job.”

After the vote, Chapman said, “I own a business and I’ve had to lay off a whole bunch of people ... . Sometimes we have to make difficult decisions in a difficult time. You failed the people.”

LUSJ reporting today on the continuing 2010 city budget planning and then the budget meeting last night and the focus on recycling. The Buffalo News is also reporting.

It appears there was a change in the recycling plan that was discussed as Modern Disposal changed their bid (making it more expensive) and a city employee based service (picking up and delivering it to Allied in Kenmore) was submitted in its place. To get this city based option going it would have cost $102,000 or $0.16 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. The initial damage for recycling? $10.40 a year for a $65,000 house. That's a value meal at Subway. But public reaction at the meeting was still on the negative side. I'd only be hesitant on any long term costs of adding city employees.

Tucker was quoted as saying their is still hope.

Others argued it’s shameful that Lockport is one of the only municipalities in the region that still doesn’t offer a curbside recycling program. Instituting one now is about playing catch-up environmentally and morally, they said. ...... 

 The Council will hold a roll call vote on the final version of the 2010 budget next Wednesday. In the interim, Tucker predicted, “there’ll be a lot of debate about recycling. I think this Council pretty well understands, if there is a tax increase it can’t be any more than 3 percent. ... Can we have that and recycling? We’ll see.”

 If you are for it, be sure to let your council member know. The decision for this year will be coming next Wednesday.

Over all the budget is being whittled down with help from tapping reserve funds ($1.1 million).

During an afternoon work session, the Council approved some moves suggested by Mayor Michael W. Tucker and City Clerk and Budget Director Richard P. Mullaney that chopped the prospective tax increase from 12 percent to 3.86 percent

LUSJ is reporting on a public meeting scheduled for tomorrow pertaining to keeping recycling in the budget this year. The Buffalo News also has an article today.

Revenue and spending estimates were modified Monday by Mullaney, Tucker and Treasurer Michael White. The proposed general fund budget is just short of $24 million. The $1.35 million spending increase is to be covered mostly from a higher property tax levy because, year over year, there’s little growth in projected non-tax revenue such as sales tax, fees, fines, interest and state aid.

The document proposes taking $850,000 out of the $3.9 million general fund surplus, $100,000 more than this year’s budget did. The figure may rise to $1 million before the budget is approved, according to Tucker. If $1 million in surplus is appropriated in 2010, the city will sport a general fund balance of about $2.1 million, roughly the minimum 10 percent surplus recommended by the state comptroller to cover emergencies.

“There’s no way we’re going out there (to the public hearing) with a 5 percent tax increase, so I’d say we can take a little more (surplus), but not much more,” Tucker said. “There’s still some (budget) cutting to do.”

Of the $24 million projected spending, $19.6 million goes to employee costs, including 3 percent raises in 2010 for all members of the local CSEA and AFSCME units and the police and city department heads’ unions. The rest of the budget accounts for expected spending on supplies and contract/professional services retained by individual city departments, and annual debt payments

Also an article on Schrader's Garbage District proposal.

 Show up at the council chambers tomorrow (Wednesday Sept 29th) at 6:00 to be heard if you are for or against the added cost for a recycling program. You may also be able to write in to your council member if you prefer the "low-key" route.

I feel its long overdue and the cost per month is not unreasonable. It is a plus that it is contracted out and will not be adding employees or pension responsibilities to the city for the long term. I would also be for the garbage district to have everyone in the city pay for their garbage pickup thus more evenly distributing the costs.

Both the LUSJ  and the Buffalo News have articles on the city's quest to institute a more comprehensive recycling program. Each paints a different picture on the impact of the cost estimates.

The Buffalo News mentions a creation of a garbage district to more fairly distribute the costs between single and multiple residences.

Alderman Patrick W. Schrader, D-4th Ward, said he’d like to see multiple dwellings and businesses pay more than ordinary homeowners for recycling. The only legal way to accomplish that is to establish a city garbage district, a proposal that has been floated occasionally for two decades

Other committee members said they want to work on making recycling the more attractive option to property owners. The city has no limits on what, or how much, trash it will collect or who’s allowed to dump; until it does, they suspect, the majority won’t have any economic incentives to recycle. Whether it’s limiting the number of bags per property per week, or requiring every property use a set-size trash can, or limiting municipal pickup for residences only, not businesses or tax-exempt entities, the city’s approach to trash handling needs radical change, they said.

“Where else do you see sinks, couches, mountains of trash set out to the curb and know it’ll all be picked up? It’s like anything goes,” said Dawn Walczak, Niagara County director of environment/solid waste management. “Recycling looks way better (economically) when reduce and reuse go alongside it.”

I was surprised by how encompassing Lockport's garbage pickup still is when I moved here. It is nice but is it the right thing to do, even from just a cost standpoint? The costs have to add up. Also, with how liberal the pickup standards are, I am always curious why people still find a reason to dump things in empty lots etc.

-MJ

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.

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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.