Centerville council talks trash

Centerville trash customers might wheel their waste to the curb in totes when a new truck is purchased.

Town council members discussed that upcoming expense, along with employee insurance options, at their Nov. 25 meeting.

Trash

Town Manager Kevin Slick seeks council’s support to gather quotes for a new trash truck because it’s a year past when council planned to begin the process. Before Slick pursues quotes, council must determine if it wants a truck that can lift various sizes of totes or for workers to continue lifting waste into the vehicle. Residents currently leave bags and their own cans for pickup.

Slick said a tote-lifting truck would cut the town’s worker’s compensation claims for injuries sustained in lifting heavy waste. If selected, the town would charge a rental fee for one or more totes, and the cost also could be based on the weight of disposed items.

The town could offer multiple sizes of totes, depending on residents’ preferences.

Some council members said totes would address several issues. They’d be animal proof and would reduce residents’ concerns about trash crews’ handling of their garbage cans.

Council President Dan Wandersee said he and Slick saw heavy-duty totes at the Accelerate Indiana Municipalities conference. Admiring their durability, Wandersee said they probably wouldn’t bust if dropped from an airplane.

Once ordered, delivery of the truck likely would take two years.

Insurance

Councilor Josh Tudor reviewed options for workers’ health insurance amid rising costs. If the town stays with its current plan, the town would pay about $5,500 more per month for health insurance.

Workers pay 7% of their health insurance costs, so they’d pay about $200 more per year.

Centerville would also pay about $75 more per policy per year for dental, vision and life coverage, which the town covers fully for employees.

Tudor said another insurance option would cost Centerville less, but major needs such as surgery could be much more expensive for workers. He didn’t favor passing that cost along to employees, and neither did councilor David Cates.

Tudor said even with the additional $200 payroll deduction, Centerville’s workers would still pay substantially less for insurance than those in other area municipalities.

“You’re not going to dodge the price increase,” councilor Gary Holbert said.

Wandersee asked Clerk-Treasurer Sarah Rice to examine utilities, general and police budgets to determine if they could absorb the increase.

Council could make a decision at its 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9, meeting in town hall, 220 E. Main St. The public is invited.

In other business

• Because of traffic hazards, council approved the ordinance to eliminate parking on either side of Water Street between Spruce and Ash streets after third reading.
• Centerville’s leaf pickup concluded after all streets were visited Nov. 25. Residents will need to bag any leaves and include them with weekly trash.
• Town hall will close from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Dec. 11 for a staff holiday lunch.
• Council supported a water project amendment to add additional potential lead lines to investigate and replace.
• Police will take a few kids recommended by their schools to shop at Meijer on Dec. 13.
• In October, five code enforcement investigations took place. Two were cleared without enforcement and three were cleared with enforcement. Three hundred dollars in fines were issued.