Curbside Recycling Changes Could Be Coming Soon
In an effort to streamline waste collection — and save money in the long run — city officials are eyeing a plan to start distributing 18,000 plastic recycling containers to residents in 2013.
Automating the city’s refuse and recycling could cost the city big bucks up front, but could save lots of money in the future.
That was a part of the discussion with members of the administration and a few city councilmen at council’s public works committee meeting on Monday night.
Another portion of the discussion revolved around parking, and how the city might have to consider issuing parking bans on streets on the days of collection.
“Nothing is decided yet, but this is the start of a good discussion,” said Shawn Juris, the Ward 3 councilman and chairman of the committee, who added that there are still some questions he’d like answered.
In an effort to streamline waste collection — and save money in the long run — city officials are eyeing a plan to start distributing 18,000 plastic recycling containers to residents in 2013.
Mayor Michael Summers told Lakewood Patch last month that he hopes to switch the method of garbage collection to recycling through an automated process.
The proposal, which came up as part of the 2013 capital investment budget discussion, would cost the city an estimated $53 for each of the 18,000 containers.
However, Summers said the move could save the city as much as $100,000 per year.
In a nutshell, he said, the city receives money for recycled materials and pays to send stuff to a landfill.
Members of the public works committee said they’d like to see additional financial details of the plan before signing off on it.
“There should be some data that talks to the cost-benefit analysis,” said Ward 1 councilman David Anderson.
This wouldn’t be the first shake-up in the city’s department of refuse and recycling. A few years back, during the Ed FitzGerald administration, the city ended backyard garbage pickup, requiring residents to haul their waste to the tree lawn.
“We traded a capital investment up front for a continued operating reductions down the line,” said Ward 2 councilman Tom Bullock. “This gets us into the next layer.”
Allison K
8:31 am on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Having the recycling cans would be great! No more blue grocery bags blowing down the street!! Ha! I'm not for the parking bans, our house doesn't have a driveway.
Tfacey
10:18 am on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Parking bans will be a nightmare and more than likely a huge profit maker (in terms of parking tickets) for the city. Where do they expect people with no driveways to put their cars - in the yard??? This city has enough parking issues without adding a parking ban on collection days.
DLSJR
11:39 am on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
In an Ideal lakewood this would work out great, but in our current city good luck moving all those cars. I can only imagine that the city will cut off commercial properties like they did with our trash removal. Also my property taxes did not go down after service was cut. I still don't see how the current trash removal saves time and money, beside cutting off the higher property tax payers in Lakewood. The driver parallel parks in between cars and then walks every can to the sidewalk after they remove the trash from them at least they do on Clifton. I pay close to $100,000 a year in property taxes to lakewood for all my commercial properties, I don't own residential property. I pay $1,200- $3,000 a year per property for trash removal. Is the city willing to cut my taxes if service is removed? Is the city going to take all my recycling bins to the curb every week? Since I would rather pay someone then do it myself. One reason I purchased properties here was for the back yard pick up. Oh the city made me buy 14 trash cans for a 7 unit property right before they cut off my service. I'm one pissed off tax payer.
Carolina
2:07 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Cleveland doesn't seem to have any issues with both cans out on the same day and they have not restricted any parking either. Also, I don't necessarily put out my garbage can every week, or my recyclables either for that matter. Unless both trucks would be coming down the street at the same time, I don't really think it is as big an issue as it is being made out to be.
Shelley
3:59 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Um, common sense people. I bet you would be issued a tag to put on your car if you have no driveway at all. But for the people who clog up my narrow street because it's convenient or they don't like to shovel their driveway, sorry for your luck.
sandra
5:00 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
What do we get out of recycling???? My taxes haven't gone down. How do we make out with this??
The original Bill
8:12 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Umm it's good for the environment? If that isn't enough for you it saves the city about $125,000 a year. Do you expect to see your taxes go down $2 a year because of this massive windfall the city gets out of recycling?
The original Bill
8:16 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Oh and by the way don't expect to see any of that $2 for quite some time. The money being saved will go towards buying the new containers for all the residences. I think it will probably be about 10 years before that happens.
Benjamin J Deike
10:04 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013
How about you put your trash and recycling on the no parking side of the street. One pass per truck. No parked cars.
Susan Kaminski
9:52 am on Wednesday, January 30, 2013
I agree with you. But then the complaints from people who have their neighbor's containers on their lawns. oh boy
Charlene Hall
12:49 am on Wednesday, January 30, 2013
I don't believe they are talking about one container for all the recyclables, all the surrounding cities, including Cleveland provides one recycling can for each single family home and all of the recyclables are placed in them, unless I read it wrong, please correct me if I'm wrong, but Lakewood will be providing 3 small plastic bins, one for paper, one for plastic, etc., so the Lakewood residents will also be doing all the separating for the city. I can't speak for anyone else, but I simply don't have the room in my house for all of these containers, and we do after all pay the highest property taxes and water on the west side
The original Bill
7:49 am on Wednesday, January 30, 2013
I don't know where you got the idea that there is going to be 3 containers that you keep in your house. There is going to be one container, on wheels, that you will keep outside just like the one for your trash. The whole idea is for the recycling to be picked up just like the trash, with an automated truck.