[fbs0724]

aren't the taxes high enough that garbage/recycling would be included??? having just moved from the east coast i find this rather appalling that i now have to pay for this separately from what i already pay in taxes. can anyone shed a little light on this for me???

[greyduk]

Whether it comes out of your taxes or not, you'll still be paying for it. Sure the city could do it, you'll just have to raise taxes again. Same money, different payee.

[monkeynoodle]

Believe me when I say this; Having a private company pick up your garbage is way cheaper in the long run vs. city collection for garbage. The majority of garbage companies pay there employees a set amount for the day. So, no matter if it takes them 6 hours to complete or 8 hours to complete they get paid the same. Thats why you always see those guys hustling to get it done. Now, lets hand collection it over to a bunch of city workers, on top of hourly pay, there's health insurance, workers comp, retirement, vacation days, holiday pay and sick days to pay out. Not to mention paying for trucks, fuel, maintenance and a ton of things I'm probably missing. I pay 21.00 a month for garbage pickup, not to bad a deal for the taxpayers if you ask me

[greyduk]

Most cities that offer free garbage pickup contract it out though, so they're not city workers.

[SCGranny]

Originally Posted by greyduk

Most cities that offer free garbage pickup contract it out though, so they're not city workers.

Yes, they contract it out - which means that the "waste management" workers can pretty much do as they please, and unless there is some egrigious violation of the contract, the city is not liable for them... which also means that complaining to the city makes no difference.

There are fewer and fewer waste management companies because of the high costs of landfill and recycling charges, so frequently thre may only be one bidder for a city trash pickup contract... so that is the one they have to go with, no matter how lousy or expensive their service. Cumulatively, though, it would cost you more if the city had to buy and maintain the trucks, pay the landfill charges (or build one) and pay the workers. Private businesses have a lot fewer constraints than government bureaucracies.

We get our trash picked up once a week in a pickup truck and trailer (we have only one city worker) and hauled to a dump nearby. It is included in the water and sewer bill (the only other two city services). Bigger cities means more expense.

[greyduk]

Right. I don't think he is saying he wants the city to buy the infrastructure... you're absolutely right that would be more expensive. I think he just wants it to be covered in his taxes, which many cities do.

[Dave1215]

Specific to Papillion, I believe they have the lowest city tax in the metro area (I live there and have checked that statement and it was true the times I studied it)... plus they are not already charging you for gargage.

A lot of towns around do make you use a single garbage vendor and yes the garbage bill itself is cheaper because of that forced monopoly, but the quality is generally lower too... In Papillion, you get to choose and if you don't like the service you are free to change - nice thing about competition and free market is the quality of service by the garbage providers is generally higher in Papillion.

If you take you Papillion tax bill and add your garbage bill to it - the combined is still cheaper than just the city tax bill from most of the surrounding towns, including Omaha... I've done that for my own sanity check probably three times over the last five years... each time has proven true.

Papillion did look a few years ago at taking over the garbage service and there was a public outcry to leave it as is... most people wanted the freedom of choice and the higher quality that went with it.

[fbs0724]

thanks for the replies... i do think it should be covered by taxes. Anyway... i'm not about to go "fight cityhall" and because I want to recycle I will pay for the garbage pick up. That said... can anyone tell me what the average charge is?

thanks!

[Dave1215]

Originally Posted by fbs0724

thanks for the replies... i do think it should be covered by taxes. Anyway... i'm not about to go "fight cityhall" and because I want to recycle I will pay for the garbage pick up. That said... can anyone tell me what the average charge is?

thanks!

Differs based on company. There are probably 7-8 that serve Papillion, but the three you will see the most are:

Elkhorn Sanitation (local company)
Waste Management (national company)
Papillion Sanitation (national company)

We recently moved over to Elkhorn Sanitation - they have a pretty innovative recycling program. First, you get a large bin for recyclables - just like the one you have for trash (everyone else gives you a real little bin)... when they pick up your recyclable bin its weigh'd as its dumped into the truck... you get points in your "RecycleBank" based on the weight. You can then use those points and trade them in for coupons.. we usually use ours for coupons at HyVee where we shop. The other thing we like with Elkhorn is if you refer someone you get a credit for one-month's service. They bill quarterly and I think every quarter we have gotten at least one month free.

Wife pays the bills, I can't remember what it is, but do know when we switched to Elkhorn it was slightly cheaper (not tons)...

All three will probably be relatively close in price.


If you did choose to "fight city hall" I think the last time that was talked about the council was split pretty evenly.. some wanted forced monopoly and some wanted free market... citizen uproar was more on the free market side... that was about two years ago, so the make-up of the council has changed a bit. Since that time, Jones moved to the County Commission, Stannard is off, and both Anderson/Hienert were not reelected...

[greyduk]

will elkhorn sanitation come out to Normandy Hills? Sterret Brother's hasn't had recycling bins for over a year, so I have yet to get one since moving in.