Council rejects trash pickup measure

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

After several committee meetings and two readings, legislation requested by Mayor Jerry Mazur’s administration to coordinate trash and recycling collection within the city was defeated during Monday’s Van Wert City Council meeting.

Council members Jon Tomlinson, Joi Mergy, Ken Markward, and Steve Trittschuh voted against the measure, apparently after hearing complaints from several of the city’s private trash haulers that coordinating trash pick-up with recycling collections would create a hardship for them.

Markward also noted that, in his mind, the legislation would not accomplish what he felt was its intended purpose: getting uncollected trash off city streets, while the others who voted against the measure said they were concerned that some smaller trash haulers would be unable to collect trash within the 24-hour timeframe.

“I don’t want to harm two companies in town,” Tomlinson noted after the meeting, noting that city residents who want their trash and recycling picked up the same day can do research and find haulers who follow that schedule.

Although admitting he had voted for the legislation during two advisory votes on the measure, Tomlinson said he later had second thoughts.

“I originally thought it was a good move,” Tomlinson added. “With new information I thought there may be a better opportunity out there; I don’t know what that opportunity is.”

The “new information” was apparently the appearance of a representative of one of the city’s larger trash haulers who was unhappy with the requirements that trash be collected the same day as recycled materials.

Those opposing the measure all seemed to think there might be a better way to handle the trash collection dilemma, but no one had a better plan nor was a deadline given to city trash haulers to come up with an alternate proposal.

No trash collection company representatives attended Monday’s meeting.

Monday’s debate over the issue was sparked by Health-Service-Safety Committee Chair Bill Marshall’s call for the legislation to be brought off the table, where it had languished for the past two committee meetings. Marshall, likely frustrated that the legislation was on hold, with no timeline set for trash haulers to respond with an alternate plan, made the motion, which then led to a vote for passage on third and final reading.

In the ensuing vote, the legislation failed to get enough votes for passage.

Although disappointed the measure was defeated, Marshall said he didn’t feel it was right that the legislation remain on the table without any timetable for trash haulers to respond with an alternate plan.

One of those voting for the measure, first-term Councilman At-Large Warren Straley, said he had specifically invited a representative of one of the trash collection companies to lunch in an effort get more information on the matter. The information he received, Straley added, addressed any concerns he had with the legislation.

First Ward Councilman Fred Fisher, who chaired the Health-Service-Safety Committee when the legislation was introduced, said he was frustrated by the negative vote on the issue.

“I want to be fair to everybody, but on the same token, it looks like we were on a track to step forward and make things advance,” Fisher said, “and now, all of a sudden, we’re down starting from scratch again and we’ve wasted a lot of time, when we’ve given them plenty of time to speak and they chose not to.”

Mayor Mazur was upset over City Council’s failure to pass the measure, noting that he felt Council failed in its responsibility to do what was best for the community as a whole, especially since no one other than Markward seemed to have a stated reason for voting against the measure.

He also noted that a majority of trash haulers already collect trash on the same day that recycling is picked up, meaning the ordinance would have applied to only a few remaining trash haulers who don’t do so.

The mayor did acknowledge that the legislation could have created a hardship for the smallest of the trash haulers who don’t have much manpower, or one-man operations where the person works another job and collects trash on weekends, but felt the benefit to city residents, who would only have to put trash and recycling out on one day of the week, and his administration’s efforts to keep trash off the streets, was worth it.

The legislation was created as part of efforts spearheaded by the late John Marshall and the current administration to solve the problem of garbage sitting on city streets for several days while waiting for trash pick-up. Having trash picked up with recycling would have placed limits on how long garbage could remain uncollected.

With Monday’s defeat of the trash collection legislation, Mayor Mazur said he was now more inclined to look at having just one company collect trash for the entire city through a bid and contract process in order to accomplish one-day trash and recycling collection for the city.

Also Monday, Council appointed Richard Waters to the City Board of Zoning Appeals, and also adopted legislation dealing with the sale of unneeded city equipment and vehicles, as well as a measure to repave highways in the city.

Peony Festival Committee President Zoe Longstreth also attended the meeting to get pointers on how to apply for an F-permit to sell alcohol on public property during the upcoming Peony Festival.

The next City Council meeting will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday, February 27, in Council Chambers, on the second floor of the Municipal Building, 515 E. Main St.