City Council Report

By Dottie McGrew

The city may – or may not – have a recycling program for grass clippings in place this fall, depending on whether – or not – the mayor and council can work out a compromise.

Council in June approved and funded a yard waste recycling program to start Sept. 18. But that is about as far as the program has gone. The city received a $62,000 grant
from the Stark-Tuscarawas-Wayne Joint Solid Waste District. The grant is restricted to recycling.

The delay sparked a 20-minute verbal skirmish during the first council meeting after the six-week summer recess.

Mayor David Held told council he did not move forward on the project because Council Finance Committee Chairman Pat DeOrio in July blocked funding for a community newsletter explaining the purpose and process of the new program. Held asked for $5,000. The city sub-contracts the layout and printing of the newsletter.

“We cannot rush a $50,000 yard waste collection program that we have never done before. There must be time to design a notification program,” Held said. Further, Held said, Republic Waste Management must have time to integrate the new pickup into
their regular schedule.

DeOrio defended his action by noting the upcoming election. “I asked to see the copy for the newsletter because I am not going to allow taxpayer money to be used for a self-promotion campaign,” DeOrio said to the mayor. “Your track record of communicating the intent of council has not been exemplary.”

In mid-summer the candidates had not yet filed for the November election. Held is running unopposed for a second term as mayor.

The mayor believes it is too late to launch the yard waste recycling program this year.

Council President Doug Foltz accused Held of “deliberately holding up” the program.

“Either step up or step back,” Foltz said. “You are director of the solid waste district.
You should be for this.”

Held, Foltz and DeOrio talked after the meeting, as suggested by Ward 4 councilman Jon Snyder.

A possible compromise would be incorporating grass clippings into the curbside leaf
recycling program, which begins in mid-October.