Township won’t try to ‘control garbage’

A March 11 Fence Post letter from Mark Perry raised questions about the Wayne Township Board’s involvement in an upcoming refuse collection referendum. Let me clear up the misunderstandings for Mr. Perry and your readers. Wayne Township does not want to “control your garbage.”

The board has made no decision beside seeking the public’s input through the open and democratic process of voting. Placing the question on the ballot was prompted by past requests from homeowners associations and a 2010 online survey. Despite Mr. Perry’s claim, the township board never “pitched this as a road maintenance issue.” We have not taken a stand for or against the referendum; the voters will decide.

If the referendum passes, the township board is not limited to selecting one waste hauler. In fact, the board is not even required to award a contract. We could seek bids and if dissatisfied with the results, decide to leave everything as it is now — with residents responsible for negotiating their own services and rates.

Mr. Perry is sure rates will rise after a “teaser period.” One benefit of a township contract is that waste haulers would not be able to arbitrarily raise rates as they can now. Short-term contracts awarded to the low bidder(s) would minimize potential price hikes — not guarantee them. And, public bids ensure competition — they don’t reduce it.

There is evidence that unincorporated residents pay significantly higher garbage rates than their village neighbors. Village consumers obviously benefit from their larger population. If the referendum passes, the 1,800 unincorporated households in Wayne Township would have much more leverage than a single homeowner. A fundamental truth of capitalism is that a “volume buyer” gets a better price.

Tom Arends

Wayne Township

supervisor

West Chicago