PENDLETON — After reviewing several options for town trash service, the Pendleton Town Council approved a contract that increases monthly bills for residents while adding services to the agreement that will free up the street department for other tasks.
“It’s still substantially cheaper than getting your own service,” town councilman Chad Wolfe said during a lengthy discussion at this month’s regular council meeting.
The council approved a three-year contract with Best Way Disposal that will cost residents $14.13 per month.
Residents currently pay $9.25 per month, a rate the town said should have been raised to $9.75 some time ago to reflect the true cost of the existing contract.
The new rate, which takes effect Oct. 29, reflects Best Way’s latest bid. Best Way was the only company to respond to the town’s request for bids.
The new contract includes limb and leaf pickup from March to May and October to December, a service the town’s street department currently provides but will stop doing in November.
It also includes the pickup of one “bulky” waste item, such as a couch, per month.
The council and town manager Tim McClintick said the goal in shifting limb and leaf pickup to the trash hauler is to give the street department more time to work on things such as street, sidewalk and curb repair, and cemetery maintenance.
The move would mean an end to residents being able to rake leaves and haul all types, sizes and quantities of limbs and larger tree sections to the street for the town to remove. Councilman Bob Jones said the street department was spending one to two days per week on brush removal.
Instead, residents will have to bag their leaves with their own bags and bundle limbs with a diameter no greater than 3 inches, a length no longer than 4 feet and a maximum weight of 50 pounds. Residents will be limited to a combined 20 bags or bundles per week during the months when there’s leaf and limb pickup.
Several residents said the new service would be inadequate for them given the size of their properties and the quantity of limbs and leaves they typically dispose of.
Some people asked questions about laws regarding burning yard waste if the limits prove inadequate.
The council said there isn’t a town burn ordinance and that residents must follow state law.
Council members also considered adding town-wide recycling service at a cost of $2.50 per month per resident but ultimately left it as optional; as an option, recycling will cost $5.50 per month.
According to Best Way, about 20 percent of town residents recycle.
In other news, the council:
• Approved a revised fee schedule for Grovelawn Cemetery. It has been many years since fees have gone up, and the council several months ago proposed increasing them to a more competitive rate to allow for proper cemetery care and longterm maintenance. The cost of a grave site, for instance, increased from $450 to $900. The town experienced a spike in grave site sales after the council discussed the issue in January.
• Passed an ordinance prohibiting parking on East Street between Water Street and Falls Park Drive and on Water Street between East Street and the railroad tracks.
• Adopted a special events policy, including information about such things as event sponsor requirements and responsibilities and the application process. “We’ve just taken all these things that we have done in the past and put it into a policy,” Assistant Planning Director Rachel Christenson said.
• Approved a newsletter, social media and website policy to guide the town’s communication with residents and handling of submitted information and photos.