Moorestown Sanitaiton !!!

Moorestown trash collection continues to be bone of contention

By Dennis Mc Donald BCT staff photographer

Exterior of the temporary Moorestown Township Municipal offices on Executive Drive off Lenola Road.

Posted: Thursday, November 28, 2013 9:30 am | Updated: 7:42 am, Fri Nov 29, 2013.

By Todd McHale Staff writer

MOORESTOWN — As residents and sanitation workers continue to speak out against privatizing trash pickup, officials have begun the process of weighing their options.

“There’s a lot of different moving parts, a lot of different possibilities,” Township Manager Scott Carew said of outsourcing curbside collection.

Following a request for proposals sent out by the township in September, seven companies from around the state submitted bids to provide the service in the municipality.

“I think it went very well,” TrashPro president Robert Willis said. “There was a lot of interest. Moorestown received very competitive bids. The top three were within 13 percent.”

TrashPro, based in Mount Laurel, prepared the bid documents and serves as the township’s consultant on the matter.

Exclusive Services of Springfield, South Jersey Sanitation of Hammonton, Central Jersey Waste and Recycling of Ewing, Waste Management of Camden, Casworth Enterprises of Woodbury and Republic Services of Mount Laurel submitted proposals. Willis and township officials expect to start evaluating them in the coming days.

The municipality decided to look into outsourcing trash collection as a way to cut costs.

It annually spends $1.21 million for collection, which includes operational and employee expenses for picking up trash at 6,531 residences and for businesses along Main Street and Camden Avenue.

The sanitation division of the Public Works Department consists of 11 paid positions within the budget, with two vacancies and two employees being used in the roads and parks department, according to Carew.

For the last few weeks, residents and members of the Communications Workers of America Local 1036, which represents Public Works, including the affected workers in sanitation, have publicly opposed outsourcing.

“I feel our guys in sanitation are not only collecting our trash, but they’re also out there on the streets as our eyes,” resident Jack Lance said at the Township Council’s meeting Monday night.

As a parent of eight children, Lance said it’s nice to have local workers on the job.

“They patrol our streets with the discerning eyes of not only a good worker but a good neighbor and a good friend,” he said. “I know, personally, I’ve experienced these gentlemen helping the elderly and the handicapped, bringing their trash cans back.”

Resident Bob Zieniuk questioned whether the private contractors would be staffed with employees who are “drug-free and criminal-free.”

“Our own workers have to be that way, and we’re going to hire outsiders that may not have to be?” he asked.

Mayor Stacey Jordan said the council will take everything into consideration and not just the amount of money to be saved by privatizing.

“The well-being and the safety of all our residents is the foremost issue we want to make sure of,” Jordan said.

Sanitation worker Richard Lamothe said he wishes the township would come to the bargaining table.

“It’s not really fair to the workers who have been here for many years. We’re willing to sit at the table and negotiate a fair contract,” Lamothe said.

Jordan said she appreciated the feedback from residents and workers, but reiterated that it’s the council’s responsibility to investigate ways to cut costs.

“We have to look at it,” she said. “We have looked at a lot of other things, too. Some have worked; some don’t work. But we have to look at everything in order to make sure we are doing the best job. It doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. It doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen.”

Willis said he expects to verify all the documents submitted by the private contractors and present his findings by next week. Carew, Deputy Mayor Christopher Chiacchio, Councilman Greg Newcomer, the township’s chief financial officer and the director of Public Works will evaluate the proposals and various options and hope to make a recommendation at the council’s Dec. 16 meeting. It will be at 7:30 p.m. at the high school.