08-25-08 City trims rate hike, collects trash at half private rates

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reserves. Picking up trash is a business, and business costs have increased,” said Gary Gilot, director of public works for the City of South Bend. “Without additional revenue, the City would need to reduce special pickups and change residential trash collection from weekly to every other week or pursue other similar Solid Waste service cuts if no fee adjustment is approved.” When rate increases were first discussed with Council members last month, the City considered a 30 percent rate increase phased in over three years. Still, even that original amount was less than proposed new rates in neighboring Mishawaka, which is considering a standard monthly rate of $12.95 and a senior rate of $10.57 monthly plus a $3 monthly container fee and fuel surcharge clause. Monthly charges for private vendors serving unincorporated parts of St. Joseph County range from $15 to $21.10 monthly, not including additional surcharges. Each week, the City of South Bend collects solid waste for nearly 32,000 customers, transporting the waste to two area landfills and a city disposal, while composting yard waste and participating in recycling through the Solid Waste Management District. City crews collect downtown trash daily, while, for residents, they also collect yard waste weekly (in season) and can be scheduled for large item pickup each week. Yet with increasing gas prices and landfill tipping fees, plus a need to replace city trucks and containers have had negative impacts. More than half of the fleet is 13 years old. Could customers save money if the City outsourced trash collection? According to an analysis of the recent Mishawaka Solid Waste private contracting bid and accounting for differences in covered services, privatizing South Bend’s trash collection could cost each resident nearly $3 more per month than presently and nearly $4 more per month for seniors than the proposed rate increase. That finding emerged from an analysis of the low bidder for private trash collection service in the City of Mishawaka. The analysis looked at costs for comparable service – a Solid Waste container is provided by South Bend without additional charge (containers in the Mishawaka private contract are rented for a $3 monthly charge). Containers also are required for recycling services (which, in South Bend, are provided by the Solid Waste Management District). The only other difference in services was that in South Bend yard waste is collected separately and composted, where it can be reused by residents and landscape nurseries. In Mishawaka, yard waste would be commingled with trash and disposed in a landfill. If adopted by the Council, the new rates would take effect Sept. 1. - 30 -