Bradenton Beach commissioners may dump the city-operated trash collection service due to concerns about increased costs associated with maintaining its garbage trucks.
The commission, meeting Nov. 10 at city hall, voted unanimously to proceed with issuing a request for proposals from solid-waste companies for trash and yard waste collection.
Mayor Bob Bartelt brought the matter to the commission in a special meeting that followed some difficult days for the city’s sanitation crew.
Both of the city’s garbage trucks have needed repeated repairs recently. On one collection day, with both trucks down for repairs, the city crew had to collect trash by hand, using a flatbed truck.
While praising the employees’ efforts to get the job done despite equipment failures, Bartelt said the commission seriously needs to consider the future of city-operated sanitation services.
One city garbage truck was built in 1999 and must be replaced, Bartelt said. The city has about $127,164 set aside for a new truck, which will cost $250,000, leaving a $72,989 deficit.
Additionally, Bartelt said there’s a possibility the city’s other garbage truck, a 2004 model, may need replacement, if not this fiscal year then perhaps next.
“The problem is we have a 1999 and a 2004 truck and they seem to have worn out their usefulness,” the mayor said. “The 1999 has pretty much a rusted-out belly… .The 2004, that puppy has worn out its useful life.”
Commissioners, during the meeting, also discussed the difficulty in collecting past-due accounts for sanitation, as well as costs associated with personnel, vehicle insurance and emergency repairs or services.
Commissioners wondered whether contracting with a private company would result in increased or decreased rates or savings. Currently the city rate for trash collection at a single-family residence is $195 a year. The rate for a commercial business with a 1.5 cubic yard Dumpster picked up twice a week is $1,456 per year.
Public works director Tom Woodard said compared with rates in other cities, Bradenton Beach’s current rate is “cheap.”
Woodard, discussing the mechanical breakdowns with the commission, said, “By no means am I trying to talk myself out of sanitation… .I just want you to be aware.”
Earlier this year, as it worked through the 2010-11 budgeting process, the commission hired Waste Pro to collect recyclables in the city.