Garrettsville – As most Garrettsville residents are aware, the Village maintains a recycling drop-off center at the Service Garage parking lot on Water Street. Village Council is currently exploring the possibility of switching from the drop-off center to curbside recycling as several of our neighboring townships and villages have, such as Hiram and Mantua.
Some information about Curbside Recycling
The Portage County Solid Waste District currently employs what is called a “dual stream” collection method, in which residents are supplied with 18-gallon bins for collection of their recyclables. Paper and cardboard are collected in one or more bins, while glass, cans and #1 and #2 plastics are collected in separate bins. Curbside collection can occur once a week or every two weeks. Residents are billed by the Solid Waste District once a year for curbside service; weekly pickup currently costs $39.00 per year, while the bi-weekly service is $27.00 per year. It’s important to note that if the resident does not pay the bill when due, it will be assessed to their property taxes.
However, the Solid Waste District is planning to switch from the current dual stream system to a single stream system, in which the bins provided will be larger (48 to 95 gallons, depending on need), wheeled, and each household will collect all recyclable materials in a single bin. When the single stream system is implemented, the Solid Waste District will also begin accepting plastics #3 through #7, greatly increasing the amount of plastic that will be recycled and reducing the burden on our landfills. Bill Steiner, Director of the Portage Solid Waste District, advises that he hopes to have the single stream system implemented in the last quarter of 2012 or the first quarter of 2013.
Village Contribution to Resident Cost
Currently, the Village pays $3,000.00 per year to maintain the receptacles at the drop-off center. Council could choose to re-allocate that $3,000.00 to curbside recycling. Doing so would reduce the amount billed to each residence by approximately $2.60, bringing the cost for weekly pickup down to $36.40 per year and bi-weekly pickup to $24.40 per year. In addition, curbside recycling may also reduce your current trash pickup resulting in a potential savings to a resident.
Your Input is Important
Before Village Council makes any decisions, we want to know your opinion. For this reason we’ve developed a short survey which can be accessed at the Village’s web site, “Garrettsville.org” or by calling the Village at 330-527-4424. Please take a few minutes to visit the site or call and complete the survey – your opinion matters!
