County recycling continues, with expected reviews

Union County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a one-year contract Monday with Waste Management to provide recycling bins in Afton and Creston, but will continue to research ways to provide the service at a lesser cost.

With the contract at expiration, Waste Management proposed a two-year contract with an expected cost increase the second year. The county agreed to keep the same rates for another year but has noted how much more they are paying for the service over recent years. The county will pay $1,408 a month plus $350 each time one of the bins is emptied. It has been common for the bins to be emptied twice a month. That is for all items; paper, plastic, aluminum cans, glass and cardboard for each town.

The one-year agreement includes the county can make changes to the services. There are multiple cardboard bins in Creston and the supervisors wondered how cardboard recycling would change if there were fewer bins, to lower the cost to empty. The county does not want residents who recycle to leave their items outside the bins that are full, or in county ditches, as that causes other concerns. Supervisors also wondered about the interest of recycling if the bins were emptied just once a month.

No additional action was taken, but supervisors expect to review this issue in the future.

Other suggestions were to have, for example, only cardboard bins in Creston and a bin for the other items in Afton. Hopkins wondered if people could have and option of having their own recycling bins at their residence and pay for the service.

Bids were accepted for the

In other county news...

Auditor Sandy Hysell said people can request an absentee ballot for the June 4 primary beginning today. The ballots will be mailed

on May 15. Ballots must be returned to her before or on June 4. Contact Hysell at the courthouse for additional information.

Bids were approved for bridge work. A bid of $417,631 from Herberger was accepted for Dogwood, near 170th Street, southwest of Creston.

A bid from Herberger for $518,836 was accepted for a bridge on 160th Street, west of Highway 25 north of Creston. The bridge is west of what is known as Kessler’s Curve. The same bid included a bridge on 150th Street east of Jaguar.

The county received a second bid for Dogwood from GovCo, but was about $26,000 more.