WATERVILLE — A recycling center on Armory Road that stopped accepting business from residents and small businesses recently is accepting recyclables once again.
The city will pay Shredding on Site owner Craig Lefebvre $800 a month to continue accepting recyclables for the next four months at least, according to City Manager Michael Roy, who said the program starts Tuesday.
“In four months, we’ll sit down with him and review how it’s going,” Roy said.
Shredding on Site stopped accepting recyclables from city residents and small businesses because the city’s new program greatly reduced the volume being dropped off.
The new agreement between the city and Lefebvre was reached after city officials received complaints from businesses and individuals who regularly took recyclables to Shredding on Site but had no other outlet for doing so after the center closed to city residents and businesses. It closed because the city started a voluntary curbside recycling program in advance of launching a pay-as-you-throw trash collection system, and when the recycling program started, the volume arriving at Shredding on Site was drastically reduced.
“We pick up recycling (curbside) only where we pick up garbage, and we only pick up garbage where there are four units or less — and no businesses,” Roy said.
If residents want to take recyclables to Shredding on Site in addition to leaving recyclables at the curb, they may do so, according to Roy.
In past years, residents voluntarily took recyclables to a Ken-A-Set Association drop-off site on Industrial Road. Skills Inc. eventually took over the operation and discontinued it last year. The city had paid Skills $12,500 a year to take those recyclables.
The city was in a bind last year when Skills stopped taking the recyclables, so Lefebvre offered to take them at his Armory Road center free of charge.
But when the city launched the voluntary curbside recycling program July 21, Shredding on Site experienced an “immediate and drastic decline in recycling,” said Public Works Director Mark Turner.
Turner said Monday that Shredding on Site is local, accessible and convenient for residents.
Amy Calder — 861-9247
Twitter: @AmyCalder17
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.