Latest Danvers Trash Fee Repeal Push Fails At Town Meeting

DANVERS, MA — The latest — and perhaps final — push to rescind a $200 trash and recycling fee for residents to offset increases in the town's collection contract failed multiple votes of town meeting members on Monday night.

Town meeting members voted "no action" on the proposal to rescind the fee and voted down an amendment to request the Select Board find other ways to pay for the estimated $1.4 million in increases through the use of so-called "free cash," real estate transaction taxes and grants.

The latest vote comes a year after the process to determine the necessity of the fee to help offset the increases began. Town meeting last year authorized the town's $1 million purchasing of the bins needed for the new automated system, but a series of hearings, forums and committee meetings then recommended to Town Manager Steve Bartha to impose the fee to offset the increases in the annual collection costs.

The Select Board voted 3-2 in October to endorse the fee. Those opposed then brought warrant articles to both a special town meeting this winter and Monday's annual town meeting in hopes of forcing its repeal.

Those supporting the fee argue that it is necessary to avoid layoffs and cuts to other municipal services and departments in line with authority granted to the town executive branch under state government statute, with those opposed arguing that the fee is a form of taxation designed to circumvent Proposition 2 1/2.

"We have been working on the trash management of this town for one year," Select Board Chair David Mills said. "We have probably had 12 or 15 public meetings about the trash. Don't for a minute think that the Board or the administration has taken anything lightly about the trash.

"For the suggestion that the process was inappropriate I don't get it," Mills added. "We followed the law exactly. We have followed the recommendation of the town's attorney. ... Specifically to this amendment, to bring it back to the Select Board to do what? To figure out which town employees should be fired or terminated to come up with the money?

"Please don't go to bed thinking you have been (violated) by a Board of Selectmen trying to squirm more money out of you. ... Please, let this trash thing go to sleep."

Town meeting members also voted down a proposal to explore the purchase of town meeting member electronic vote counters — which were introduced in Marblehead this year — that was brought forward, in part, based on disputes about the special town meeting vote on the trash warrant article. The electronic counters, estimated to cost about $15,000, are designed to determine exact vote counts — albeit anonymous ones — for town meeting articles.

Town meeting members supported adding Danvers to the list of North Shore communities — including Salem and Swampscott — banning carry-out styrofoam containers for food establishments involving food prepared on premises. The article passed with an added exemption for retail meat and deli operations.

Town meeting members supported pushing the Beverly Airport Commission to authorize an environmental study on the impact of the airport on Danvers and surrounding communities, as well as a recommendation that the town manager explore drawing additional tax revenue from the airport.

A proposal to ask the town charter and town manager act review committee to also examine an elected official recall proposal also passed.

The annual town meeting concluded in one night just under three hours with most of the financial articles receiving little or no discussion before overwhelming votes of approval.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)