Better trash rates on the way in Ela Township

After 26 years of paying high prices for trash hauling, Linda Webb finally fought with the garbage company.

That was two years ago.

Webb, a resident of unincorporated Ela Township, now gets the same garbage collection rate as her Deer Park neighbors, but pays $65 more for yard waste pickup.

"Never have we had so much difficulty with the rates being so much higher than everyone else," she said. "We are being held at the mercy of the garbage company. We have no recourse. I'd like to see a contract to protect us."

That will happen with voter approval last week of a referendum granting Ela Township authority to negotiate a contract with a single waste hauler to secure better rates in unincorporated areas.

The measure was approved with 525 "yes" votes to 408 "no" votes, according to unofficial vote totals released recently by the county.

Those votes had to be hand counted after the Feb. 5 election because the referendum question was printed on special pink ballots. A filing mix-up forced the question to be left off the optical scan ballot.

The results came in late last week with write-in totals.

Webb was disappointed that of 3,737 eligible township voters, only 933 voted on the referendum.

"I don't know if they knew about this," she said. "There should have been more information forthcoming."

It was unincorporated residents who rallied to get Ela Township to place the question on the Feb. 5 ballot.

Township Supervisor Lucy Prouty also was surprised by the low voter turnout and the number of "no" votes. The measure does not raise taxes for any township residents.

Unincorporated residents would be billed individually by the contracted agency for services such as collection, disposal, composting or recycling of garbage, refuse and ashes.

According to the 2005 census, 4,340 residents live in the unincorporated area.

"I think they really didn't understand it, too," Prouty said. "We have more things to do than this. And we are only really doing this as a favor to those people who have been coming to our meetings to complain."

Ela Township will work with the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County to get bids from garbage disposal companies.

"And then our job is done because the bills go to the disposal company," Prouty said. "We'll get the most for the lowest."