City Council Considering more "Trash Amnesty Days" Despite Financial Concerns

When Cranston’s new trash contract with Waste Management began earlier this year, many residents were dismayed to learn that the longstanding practice of free bulky pickup was ending.

Now, for a fee of $18 per item -- $35 for mattresses -- Waste Management will haul away your large-sized junk no problem.

But for many cash-strapped families, or people throwing out more than one item, the fee is a hindrance to an empty garage.

In response to an outcry shortly after the new contract began, the city hosted a special “trash amnesty” day for residents to get rid of one last bulky item for free.

The success of the event has led City Council members -- including a few who have some bulky waste to get rid of themselves -- to begin a discussion about implementing more trash amnesty days.

“We wanted to put something on the docket to talk about it,” said City Council Vice President Michael Farina. “It’s one of the big issues with we think the trash program has.”

The topic has come up at recent Public Works and Safety Services and Licensing subcommittee meetings but the full council has not weighed in, nor has any specific ordinance been drafted.

Council members as of last Wednesday were hoping to get a cost analysis from the city’s Finance Director before taking any forward steps. It is likely that the council will form a subcommittee, which would pick which days would be trash amnesty days, but the whole idea could fall apart if the cost is too great.

The new trash contract was supposed to save Cranston more than than $200,000 in the short term. Though specific costs for amnesty days are unclear, too many amnesty days could wipe out any savings in a big way.

The city’s Public Works Director Ken Mason told the City Council earlier this month that a whopping 16,000 mattresses were disposed of in 2013 at a cost of nearly $440,000. And that is a typical year.

Though it’s unlikely that 16,000 mattresses would end up on the curb on an amnesty day, every single one could cost the city a few dollars. And City Hall will most likely resist an expansion of the amnesty program, setting the stage for a potential showdown.

So the question for the City Council and the administration is -- at which point does the cost become too great?

If it’s too expensive, the message from the administration to the City Council might be: “You’ve made your bed, now lie in it.”