(Graphic Illustration - MetroCreativeConnection - Public Meeting- Council Meeting)

PARKERSBURG — City Council is expected to vote on a tabled recycling contract and revised sanitation rates at their meeting on Tuesday.

The meeting is slated for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in council chambers on the second floor of the Municipal Building.

The proposal for a subscription-based curbside recycling program to be provided by Rumpke of Ohio originally would have charged participating households $15.25 a month, with six months due in advance. If fewer than 900 customers participated, the city would have been responsible for paying the difference.

Council voted unanimously to table the contract ordinance during a special meeting on Jan. 6, with some members expressing concern over the city’s liability if the minimum number of customers wasn’t reached.

At a Jan. 20 meeting, council President Andrew Borkowski pitched a revised approach on which he worked with Finance Director Eric Jiles, under which all residents would pay a $1.50-a-month recycling surcharge and those who wanted to participate in curbside recycling would pay an additional $3 a month.

Officials have said the $1.50 charge would cover the minimum payment required of the city by Rumpke.

The contract ordinance still reads the same as the initial proposal, but Mayor Tom Joyce said it will not need to be amended.

“The contract that was provided to the city is about how the city is billed,” he said.

Another ordinance on first reading would amend municipal code to reflect the proposed recycling contract and the sanitation contract approved last month with Waste Management on a pair of 6-3 votes. That will spell out the billing for both recycling and solid waste collection, which will be handled by the city.

“Rumpke will bill the city; the city will pay them,” Borkowski said.

It includes a reduction in the monthly sanitation fee. The city now charges $22 a month but that would be reduced to $21, which is the $19.50 rate Joyce proposed with the new contract plus the $1.50 recycling fee.

City Attorney Blaine Myers said a two-month credit proposed by Joyce in recognition of the sanitation difficulties over the last year – including the suspension of curbside recycling since May – would be part of a future ordinance.

Other changes in the sanitation ordinance include the addition of aspects of the Waste Management contract, such as definitions and pricing for bulky goods pickup. It also removes the language for the city’s recycling program and outlines the “voluntary recycling program” to be provided by Rumpke.

The ordinances for the contract and changes to city code would have to pass twice without significant amendment before they could go into effect.

Sanitation has been a hotly debated topic, with many residents at recent meetings opposed to the city contracting out the services it has provided for decades. A property owner who lives outside the city has requested an investigation by the West Virginia Public Service Commission. City officials responded by acknowledging the commission is to review the contract but saying additional measures that have been requested are unnecessary.

There are five employees remaining in the Sanitation Department, with workers from other departments and temporary employees assisting in trash pickup, officials have said.

Also on Tuesday’s agenda is an ordinance amending city code regarding membership on the Parkersburg Tree Commission. It would remove the requirement that the city arborist be a member of the commission since that position no longer exists within the city’s organizational structure. That position would be replaced with a sixth individual nominated by the mayor and confirmed by council. The total membership would be eight, including the public works director and a designated member of council.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.