MIDDLETOWN – Mayor Joseph DeStefano has formally presented his proposal to revamp garbage collection in the City of Middletown and an informal public hearing will be held on the subject during Tuesday’s virtual common council session.
The mayor proposes to replace three-person trucks with one person using a mechanical arm system to lift and dump garbage receptacles.
He estimates it will save the city up to $500,000 annually.
Back in 2018, DeStefano proposed a phased-in approach to the new system, but now, “based upon feedback from some council members and recognizing that our current sanitation fleet is old and in need of replacement, I recommend that we no longer consider a phased-in period and go directly to implement this plan citywide in 2020.”
Switching to the new system will improve working conditions for the men and women in the sanitation department, reducing workers’ compensation costs, he said.
No one would be laid off; instead, staff would be reduced through attrition.
And the mayor said the plan would increase recycling rates, “which are abysmal in the city hovering around six percent for many years.”
The capital investment for the new system would be about $1.8 million for garbage bins and three garage trucks.
