Trash rates going up as recycling ends for majority of Villagers
 

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Trash rates going up as recycling ends for majority of Villagers
June 18, 2020

Meta Minton
Trash rates will be going up when recycling ends for a majority of Villagers.

The North Sumter County Utility Dependent District Board on Thursday unanimously voted to approve a contract with Covanta, a company that converts waste to energy.

The contract will raise the current waste pickup charge from $19.38 to $22.24 per month, representing a 14.75 percent increase. The increase will take effect Oct. 1 and then increase 3.25 percent annually for the following nine years.

The NSCUDD Board represents nearly 54,000 homes in Community Development Districts 1 through 11.

The Villages’ $692,000 monthly contract with Covanta means Villagers’ trash will account for 30 percent of the disposables which will wind up at the company’s Lake County waste-to-energy plant. You can see the Covanta contract with The Villages at this link: Covanta_Contract

Items that previously were sorted as “recyclables” will be co-mingled with garbage.

James Buettner of the Village of Dunedin told the NSCUDD board predicted this will come as a shock to Villagers.

“A lot of people are going to be unhappy with changing recycling, something they have been doing for 40 years,” Buettner said.

He complained there should have been more media coverage, particularly by The Villages Daily Sun.

The new contract includes $70,000 for “marketing” the trash collection changes that will take place in October.

that stinks. Do we not get any say in the matter?

Pay by the bag for what you get rid of would be a great alternative. Especially for people who are only there for around half the year and are paying for trash for about 6 months a year and putting out zero trash. I sincerely hope that all the FROGS that complain about snowbirds somehow appreciate how their trash (and ammenity fees) are being subsidized by the people they love to complain about.

The original article had a comment by a Villager that this will come as a shock to Villagers and I agree. Even thought it has been discussed in numerous articles in the Daily Sun and other publications, many people don't read the articles. They will wait and say " Why didn't we get to have input?'. They did, but they didn't attend the meetings. This hasn't been kept a secret. I even wrote a post on this a month or so ago. I am sad to see recycling go, but I saw how times have changed and it won't work anymore.

I ask my fellow Villagers to work to help to keep our Villages the best they can be. Somethings you can have an affect on, somethings you can't. Instead of complaining about things you can't change, do something positive to make our community better. Pickup a piece of liter, help a neighbor who my need a ride to the doctor or just say hi to the next person you see today.

There were many opportunities to have your say.
Threads and posts on the subject have regularly appeared on TOTV.
Posts from 'twoplanekid,' who I believe is a NSCUDD Board member, has given regular updates, of times and location of meetings the public were invited to attend on this subject.

We are relatively new to the area and still learning how this place works. Guess I have to pay better attention.

Thanks.

Yep.
Here is a good place to start: Village Community Development Districts

Some folks have the notion that because they are not here to leave a bag of trash on the drive way that the operating expenses for the trash removal are magically less.

Another way of charging non full time residents is to divide the annual rate over the number of months here. The result is a higher rate for "part time" usage. Hence the more you use the service the less you pay.

Then instead of subsidizing the full time residents it becomes just paying your fair share.

Just sayin'.............where is the tongue in cheek imoji when ya need it?

I know one of these things has monthly meeting for new folks and plan to attend once the covid thing goes away

Your paying for your trash for 6 months somewhere else while your here , also for school that you don’t have children going to , fire protection etc , etc , should everything be structured like piecework, if you go on a 3 week vacation you don’t pay for trash or fire because your not there

Wrong, we don’t pay for trash up north when we are in the Villages. We pay by the bag, no bags, no fee. That’s the way it should be.

Recycling has become less than pratical across most the nation so The Villages waste will start going to the Covanta waste-to-energy plant in Lake County rather than trucked all the way to a landfill in Georgia, as is being done now. Lawn waste gets picked up with garbage elimating one pickup a week.

Homes south of the Turnpike are already serviced with this option.

I was aware of the change and wasn't surprised. Like many have said, it's been posted here and there has been coverage in The Daily Sun (just not front page above the fold coverage)

I am curious about the lawn waste...does anyone know if we are we doing away with the brown paper bags?

Very well said! I totally agree, and commit to doing all I can to keep this a positive, beautiful, clean, caring community.

Sign up for the Resident Acadamy....it's a free service plus you get to talk to the people that run this place (District not Developer)