Patterson residents may see higher trash bills

PATTERSON — City residents may be paying more for trash collection soon.
A proposed ordinance raising the garbage pickup fee is in the works. The proposed amount hasn’t been determined, but an additional $1.90 was kicked around at Tuesday’s Patterson City Council meeting.
Patterson has signed on to a deal worked out by parish government with Pelican Waste & Debris for parishwide trash collection.
Mayor Rodney Grogan and City Accountant Reginald Weary told the council that the city government is currently losing about $3,500 per month on trash service.
Part of the loss comes from a fee for billing utility customers that live outside the city, Grogan said. The city is allowed 65 cents to process each bill based on an old charge of $6.50.
Now the charge is $17, but the bill fee is still 65 cents.
Bears complicated matters further.
Some Patterson residents are required to have bear-proof trash cans, which latch to discourage late-night feeding expeditions by bears.
But the latches make trash collection more labor-intensive and affect both cost and service.
“We haven’t received the best service from Pelican,” Grogan said.
The bear-proof cans have helped push the monthly cost of trash collection to just over $18 per month.
And there have been indications that the bear-proof-cans requirement may be expanded.
City Attorney Russel Cremaldi was asked to develop a proposed ordinance calling for a trash fee hike.
Under the normal course of legislation, the ordinance would require consideration during at least two monthly meetings, plus a public hearing.