Monday evening, a well-behaved gathering of what appeared to be over one hundred caring Town of Bethany citizens met with the current Town Supervisor, Carl Hyde, Jr., at an "informational meeting" concerning the state of the local transfer station. Supervisor Hyde often referred to the transfer station as a "dump" and cited similar facilities in Genesee and Wyoming counties that were considering closing; i.e. Java and Pavilion. The gist and grist of his presentation, in my opinion, is the transfer station is a luxury Bethany can no longer manage or afford.
Several citizens emphasized the need for the collection station by stating the tires, computers, televisions, and plastic bottles would only end up in the "ditches" without the facility. Others mentioned intangibles such as the feeling of community and family, which the current operating personnel foster, would be missing without the center and a loss to the community.
The pricing and practicality of "curbside" trash collection was batted around in a short question and answer session with two private haulers. Winter and windy conditions offer challenges to this alternative, let alone the lack of curbs; however, without the so-called dump, private service may be the only viable solution.
A discussion about how charges are currently leveled and how nine overcharges had been identified and refunds requested ensued. Without getting into the gritty details, empty containers are now "red flagged" for non-pickup. An audience participant brought up the fact that the Town is being charged for bulk trash or what this writer refers to as "dimensional weight". Containers have a weight limit of 750 pounds which is seldom exceeded.
His insightful solution: Place a bundle of compacted non-returnable plastic bottles into each trash bin and then surround the high density material with low density household trash bags. Not a bad observation, as this method would minimize the number of allegedly cost-ineffective, off-premise Town truck runs. Transfer station workers indicated the compacted plastic bottles were selling for less that a penny a pound. Another involved citizen suggested electronics be individually hauled to a reasonably priced collection facility in Stafford.
My general sense from the informational meeting is Bethany citizens want to continue with the transfer station, albeit, on a more cost-effective basis. According to the Town Supervisor, a final decision yea or neigh will probably coincide with the next annual vendor contract negotiation planned for early November 2015. It would be a helpful service to the citizens of Bethany, if the Town honored its pledge to publish the last five years worth of operating expenses and income details for the facility on their website or even via a paper handed out at the transfer station.
Regards,
The Average Joe
