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County recycling supported

News editor

Marion County Commission had to move its meeting Tuesday to the courtroom to accommodate everybody who attended the meeting about recycling. The discussion attracted 28 people, including residents of every city in the county.

“It tickled me pink to see that kind of crowd,” Commission Chairman Randy Dallke said later.

In particular, the county wants to partner with the cities of Marion, Hillsboro, and Florence, which each have their own trash trucks, to institute curbside recycling.

Marion City Administrator Doug Kjellin said the city is capable of providing curbside pickup. The city has twice-weekly trash pickup, and one of those could be replaced with recycling pickup. Kjellin said his main concerns were avoiding the city having to hold recyclables if it can’t drop them off at the transfer station and preventing contamination of recyclables by non-recyclable or potentially hazardous waste.

Hillsboro has a recycling program in place, where residents can take recyclables to a center and sort them. City Administrator Larry Paine said the program recycles about 120 tons per year. Hillsboro will need to replace its trash truck in the next year or two, and recycling could affect what kind of truck is purchased, he said.

Hillsboro Mayor Delores Dalke said spending one day a week on recycling could cause problems because the city has commercial customers who need trash picked up every day.

Florence would be interested in working with the county. When the county had a recycling bin in the city, a lot of people used it.

With the success of its longstanding curbside recycling program, Peabody will probably continue to do its own thing regardless of what the county does, City Administrator Shane Marler said.

Goessel Mayor Dave Schrag said he doesn’t want Goessel to stop its program that was started by volunteers after the county ended the second of two experimental programs in the last few years. In its first month of operation, the program recycled 3.3 tons. The program is supported by donations. Schrag estimated it costs about $400 per month.

Representatives from Ramona, Lost Springs, and Burns all said they would appreciate having a recycling center within 8 to 10 miles, but they can’t recycle enough to justify the cities spending money.

Lincolnville has an idea to build a recycling bin that could be hauled to the transfer station once a week if the county starts hauling recycling.

After a large majority of people in attendance expressed support, the commission decided to create a task force to work on details of a recycling plan. Commissioner Dan Holub will preside over the task force. Members will be selected from among volunteers at the commission’s next meeting on Friday.

Appraiser reappointed to 4-year term

Commissioners voted 2-1 to reappoint Cindy Magill to a four-year term as county appraiser. Dallke voted against reappointment, saying there were improvements that could be made in the department. The decision was made after the commission met alone in closed session for five minutes and with Magill for five minutes to discuss personnel.

Dallke said the real estate markets in Marion and Hillsboro are distinctly stronger than in Peabody, Florence, and Goessel, and he thinks appraisals should reflect that. He added that he thinks appraisers should move around after a few years in one job, an opinion he holds about teachers as well.

Commissioner Roger Fleming said he thinks the appraiser’s office should be more welcoming, user friendly, and empathetic.

Holub said Magill takes a lot of heat for things she doesn’t have control over. Much of what she does is mandated by the state legislature, he said. The annual grade card from the state shows Magill’s appraisals are mostly within 3 percent of actual values, while the state allows a variation of up to 10 percent.

Part-time workers hired

Val Newton was hired as a part-time worker at the transfer station for $10 per hour. David Helmer was hired as summer help in Road and Bridge Department for $10 per hour.

Upcoming schedule

The next commission meeting will be Friday morning. They will meet again Monday to discuss the budget and other issues. There will be a short meeting from 8 to 10:30 a.m. June 10.

Last modified May 30, 2013

 

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