City Council hears waste disposal services proposal; holds public hearing
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
By Jeff Snyder
MOUNT AYR, Iowa — Despite having two council members not present, work and meetings continued on Monday during the regularly scheduled meeting of the Mount Ayr City Council at city hall.
Prior to the regular meeting a Public Hearing was held at city hall in regards to the proposed property tax levy for fiscal 2027. There were no community participants that showed up, so this session was closed and the regular meeting opened that featured a packed agenda.
The largest issue up for consideration was a proposal made by Waste Management, the worlds largest waste management company.
Ammon Taylor, a representative from Waste Management, or WM, as they prefer to be called, gave a highly detailed presentation that laid out the services and costs to the city in an attempt to convince Mount Ayr officials that utilizing an outside company like Waste Management is a viable alternative to the city performing waste removal services themselves.
Included in the proposal was an outline of the projected savings the city could realize over the years in comparison to the cost absorbed by the city currently.
Taylor explained the customer service that Waste Management could provide including consolidating all trash pick ups on one day rather than spread out over two days as is the case currently. He went on to explain how the city could best utilize the current personnel for other projects around the city. Finally, he noted that the city could sell their existing trash removal equipment thereby saving on maintenance and replacement costs if needed.
Taylor also discussed the recycling program offered by Waste Management and how they would be able to do twice monthly recycling pickup rather than the current once per month provided by the city.
Mount Ayr City Administrator Brent Wise explained how each service provided by the city is tied to a detailed payroll process where each service accounts for a certain percentage of an employees compensation.
The budgets are complex and the city will take time to review each scenario and how it would impact the overall city budget. Council members indicated that customer/resident satisfaction is a huge factor when considering a change this significant. City controlled waste disposal allows for more personalized community service, whereas Waste Management, while potentially cheaper, may not be able to provide the same level of customer service the community has grown used to.
The council agreed to continue examining the Waste Management proposal and would discuss it further with a full council present in the coming weeks.
In other council business, the council approved a variety of resolutions that had previously been placed before it for consideration. Among them was Resolution 2026-14 setting up a public hearing regarding the budget. The public hearing date is scheduled for April 27 at 6 p.m. at City Hall. Resolution 2026-15 was also approved which was related to the cities entrance into loan agreement for the cities sewer systems. Resolution 2026-16 was related to the hiring of a deputy/utility clerk. Council approved the hiring of Brenda Smith for this role. Resolution 2026-17 was related to the hiring of water safety instructor, pool manager, pool assistant manager and life guards. Council approved all and the associated salaries for these seasonal positions.
Wise concluded the meeting by providing an update on the downtown projects that are pending including adjustment to the plans as a result of a CAT grant the city was pursuing which unfortunately was not approved. One final note was regarding the city’s planned “Community Service” day that will be held on April 22.
