STONE HARBOR – At its March 15 meeting, Stone Harbor Borough Council heard a report from Council member Reese Moore, chair of the standing committee on Public Works.
The sensitive subject of the report was trash pickup in the borough, an issue that was the source of some significant angst among many property owners during summer 2021.
The borough is attempting to deal with the fact that summer staff for Public Works has not been available in the numbers that they were pre-pandemic. It is part of the seeming universal problem of worker shortages plaguing all levels of public entities and private businesses. Shortages make it difficult for the borough to maintain its traditional two-times-a-week trash pickup during summer.
Moore said the committee was considering moving to “tipper” for each of its trash vehicles. These are mechanical arms that capture and empty standardized trash containers. Such a move would require the acquisition and distribution of standard receptacles to all homes at an estimated cost of $350,000. The purchase of the tippers, two per truck, would run an additional $185 thousand, Moore estimated.
The use of this mode of trash collection might also require some changes to the homeowner’s location of the trash receptacles, making them easier for staff to place at the curb and subsequently return the empty ones to the home’s location.
Stone Harbor maintains what Administrator Robert Smith terms a “concierge service” that does not ask homeowners to place their cans at the curb or retrieve them when empty.
Moore said the committee is also considering setting up a collection center for homeowners and visitors to self-deliver trash to a common location.
In addition, Moore said the committee was working on an RFP (request for proposals) to test the practicality of outsourcing the trash pickup process. The problem, which several council members pointed out, is the fast approach of summer, making rolling out new practices difficult and risk-prone.
This was a discussion only, with no actions taken.
