Underwhelmed by public input, Woolwich is ready to drop its pursuit of a waste transfer station in Elmira. Once the region shutters the place in the spring, that’s it.
Having consulted with potential private operators and provided for public input, the township’s next step was to launch a formal request for proposals (RFP) from companies interested in taking over the facility from the Region of Waterloo. Meeting Mar. 1, councillors quickly quashed that notion, pointing to an apparently indifferent public.
“I’m not willing to do anything. The turnout at our last meeting was disheartening,” said Coun. Scott Hahn, referring to a Feb. 16 special session that saw fewer than a dozen residents show up.
“I feel we’ve come to an end of this process,” added Coun. Mark Bauman.
Mayor Sandy Shantz noted that a number of residents would like to see the service returned to the state it was before the region drastically cut hours, making the operation unviable. Much of the operation’s appeal came from the long-time employee there and the casual, small-town feel of the operation.
“We’ve lost what a lot of people want us to keep,” she pointed out.
Instead, a private operator would have to bring in much larger volumes of garbage, much of it trucked in from outside the area, and charge higher fees to make a go of the business.
That raises concerns about truck traffic, Shantz argued. “That’s not what I think we want for Elmira.”
Coun. Patrick Merlihan, the most active supporter trying to retain the service, wasn’t prepared to let it go so easily, suggesting the township launch the RFP process to see what options the private operators proposed.
“Maybe we put a limit on what we think would be a reasonable amount of truck traffic,” he suggested, adding other options might be worth exploring.
“After that … if it dies, well, life goes on.”
With no one else onboard, he eventually dropped the issue.
Along with the logistics, council also balked at the costs. Even at the greatly reduced service level, the region says the facility costs about $110,000 a year to run. The township looked at paying those expenses while a private deal is worked out, but not seriously.
“The cost is making it prohibitive,” said Shantz.
The facility is scheduled to close at the end of May. The township will notify the region of its decision so that it can consider shutting it sooner. The service is already on borrowed time, having twice won a reprieve from the axe.
Next comes discussions about the future of the site. Under the original deal that saw the township turn over the former landfill site to the region, Woolwich could take it back once it stops being used as a transfer station.
Chief administrative officer David Brenneman noted the region will have to complete an environmental analysis of the site, along with other measures, before any decisions are made in that regard.
The land, much of it in the floodplain, has very limited development potential, he noted.
