MONROE - In two weeks, the City of Monroe Common Council is expected to take up a recommendation from the Board of Public Works to keep trash collection services fully under the control of the city and its employees.
The board passed the recommendation to go with an "in-house" service by a narrow 3-to-2 vote Monday, after an extended discussion with staff members, some trash collection vendors and the public.
Board members Michael Boyce and Tyler Schultz voted against the motion and voiced a preference to try contracting for the service for four years first. An earlier motion for that recommendation, made by Boyce and seconded by Schultz, failed by a 2-to-3 vote.
Boyce noted that contracting the service would give the city a solid cost figure to use in the annual budget and would free up city capital for other uses during that time. Also, the city would own the needed trash containers at the end of the contract, if it decided to return to doing the collection service itself.
Schultz added that implementing a city-serviced collection might hold some unforeseen problems.
"We've never done this before," he said.
Reid Stangel, board president, said the city could use the same four years to experiment with its own service. However, Boyce and Schultz pointed out that the city would have made the initial investment of trucks and carts in that case.
Phil Rath, city administrator, said hiring any vendor would require the city to increase its trash rates, especially in the first four years, because the cost of the carts is included in vendors' proposed rates. Rath said the city rates, as he has determined them, would be cheaper than a vendor, and they include the cost of carts over a 10-year period, as well as capital for future replacement costs of trucks.
Rath and Tom Boll, street department supervisor, said the city would need a six-month lead time if it were to return to self-collection later.
But staying with an in-house service, keeping more control of the collection services and more money in town and in the city funds, played hard against hiring a vendor.
Board member Charles Schuringa was concerned about keeping the money flow in town, and was not convinced otherwise when one vendor representative said his company has an employee who actually lives in the city.
"A certain percentage (of the cost) is going to go anyway," Schuringa said, "no matter who (vendor employee) does it."
Mayor Bill Ross also favored keeping the service with the city.
"I think we're better off keeping it in-house and keep control over costs," he said. "Others (vendors) can start increasing costs, and we'll be out of the business."
The board passed the recommendation to go with an "in-house" service by a narrow 3-to-2 vote Monday, after an extended discussion with staff members, some trash collection vendors and the public.
Board members Michael Boyce and Tyler Schultz voted against the motion and voiced a preference to try contracting for the service for four years first. An earlier motion for that recommendation, made by Boyce and seconded by Schultz, failed by a 2-to-3 vote.
Boyce noted that contracting the service would give the city a solid cost figure to use in the annual budget and would free up city capital for other uses during that time. Also, the city would own the needed trash containers at the end of the contract, if it decided to return to doing the collection service itself.
Schultz added that implementing a city-serviced collection might hold some unforeseen problems.
"We've never done this before," he said.
Reid Stangel, board president, said the city could use the same four years to experiment with its own service. However, Boyce and Schultz pointed out that the city would have made the initial investment of trucks and carts in that case.
Phil Rath, city administrator, said hiring any vendor would require the city to increase its trash rates, especially in the first four years, because the cost of the carts is included in vendors' proposed rates. Rath said the city rates, as he has determined them, would be cheaper than a vendor, and they include the cost of carts over a 10-year period, as well as capital for future replacement costs of trucks.
Rath and Tom Boll, street department supervisor, said the city would need a six-month lead time if it were to return to self-collection later.
But staying with an in-house service, keeping more control of the collection services and more money in town and in the city funds, played hard against hiring a vendor.
Board member Charles Schuringa was concerned about keeping the money flow in town, and was not convinced otherwise when one vendor representative said his company has an employee who actually lives in the city.
"A certain percentage (of the cost) is going to go anyway," Schuringa said, "no matter who (vendor employee) does it."
Mayor Bill Ross also favored keeping the service with the city.
"I think we're better off keeping it in-house and keep control over costs," he said. "Others (vendors) can start increasing costs, and we'll be out of the business."