Chelsea Schneider, Municipal Innovations Specialist, Aim
Starting this spring, Greendale residents will benefit from curbside recycling through a program launched by Mayor Alan Weiss.
Along with the environmental benefits, the move is expected to save the city money in dumping fees paid for regular trash collection. And the program is aided by an Indiana Department of Environmental Management grant that’s helping purchase recycling containers for residents.
“It’s community pride,” Weiss said. “Because we can be a city that does it right. That was my hope that IDEM could point to us and say, ‘Hey, look at Greendale – how they did it.’”
Each resident will receive either a 96-gallon or 64-gallon container for recycling. Currently, residents who want to recycle must take products to a central location. Weiss said a main benefit of the curbside program is the convenience and ease it provides for recycling.
The city also will be purchasing uninform trash collection totes for residents. In addition to the aesthetic benefits, the totes will reduce the number of sanitation employees involved in trash collection, freeing them to work in other areas of the city, Weiss said. The new program also will improve the overall safety of Greendale’s trash and recycling collection process. The city is installing equipment on its trucks that will pick up totes and automatically dispose the trash.
“It’s going to save the city money and not going to raise rates,” he said, “and it’s safer for workers.”
Among other projects, Giles Chemical is modernizing its Greendale plant and St. Elizabeth Healthcare is constructing a new branch in an area pegged for economic development. Weiss also hopes to add a new park to the city.
“I’d like for us to add an eighth park, and I’d like to see some upgrades done to our current parks that need them,” Weiss said. “I’d also like to see beautification at the entrances to the city.”