Best Way Disposal employees collect trash in February 2020 in Greenwood.
Daily Journal file photo
With trash complaints piling up, Trafalgar officials are looking at options for town-wide trash pickup.
At the Thursday town council meeting, members and town staff talked about reported trash nuisances. Residents have different trash days because they can use any company; as a result, trash piles up and trash cans are always out, said Jacob Bowman, town attorney.
Officials also cited concerns that some companies residents use have missed trash days recently.
Contracting a company for trash services would “provide uniformity” and “clear up nuisance issues.” Having contracted services would also reduce the number of trash trucks driving through town and solve issues surrounding people burning their trash, officials said.
People moving in from other communities may not realize that they have to get their own trash services, which causes some residents to get behind, said Bryan Gregg, town building commissioner. Sixty-seven homes in town are currently in violation of town trash ordinances, Gregg said. Those violations add up quickly and can get expensive over time for residents, he said.
Providing town-wide trash services would be a proactive way to solve these problems, he said.
A trash bill of an estimated $33 would be applied to resident’s water bills, town officials said. That number is not final, as it only reflects the quote that had been obtained as of Thursday.
This could save residents money depending on their provider, officials said.
“I think it’s a very important thing for the town and, in fact, it saves residents money,” Bowman said.
Town officials will put out a request for proposals and get quotes from three to four companies before awarding a contract.
State law requires the council to hold a public hearing on the proposed rates and pass an ordinance authorizing the rates before they go into effect, officials said.
