Rolling Meadows mulls private garbage collection

The Rolling Meadows City Council will discuss the possibility of privatizing refuse collection on May 18, but Fred Vogt, director of Public Works, does not expect a quick decision on such a complicated issue.

Currently each single-family home in the city is billed $27.46 per month to pay the $2.5 million budgeted for the collection of refuse, yard waste and recycling.

The city staff handles refuse and yard waste, and the city has outsourced recycling to Groot Industries Inc. under a contract that expires in 2011.

Besides determining whether privatizing would save money, the city needs to learn what residents' priorities are.

For example, the city now does not charge extra for occasional bulk items like washers and dryers or for yard waste. It might be put into a contract that the company must hire any city employees who lose their jobs, Vogt said. The five employees who are paid from the refuse fees also do other public works jobs, he said.

Another question is whether the program should continue to use bags or switch to plastic carts. The city council decided not to buy a new garbage truck this year, and replacing equipment must factor into decisions.

One option might be a pilot program having a company collect refuse for a certain number of homes, as was done when the city first considered providing recycling collection.

Only four of the 23 members of the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County do their own refuse collection anymore, he said.

Vogt said he has no idea whether residents will turn out to keep refuse collection in city hands as they did recently when it was suggested money could be saved by privatizing firefighting and ambulance service. Aldermen were so impressed by residents' reaction they killed that idea immediately.