Olds residents will not have to pay an increased fee for the community’s new blue bin recycling service until May 1. In December 2013, council decided that the new rate would be $3.50 per month, a $1.50 increase.
Olds residents will not have to pay an increased fee for the community’s new blue bin recycling service until May 1.
In December 2013, council decided that the new rate would be $3.50 per month, a $1.50 increase. The change would have been effective April 1.
The third week of April, Olds residents will be getting new recycling bins delivered to their doors, according to Garth Lucas, the town’s director of corporate services.
However, recycling pickup won’t begin until the week of May 19.
That was why Coun. Mary Jane Harper recommended that council push back the fee hike for blue bin pickup at a meeting on March 10.
"Well I don't believe anybody should be charged for something in advance of actually receiving the service. Would you appreciate that? No," Harper said. "So that's all it was about to me. Just a principle that our citizens shouldn't be charged for a service they didn't receive."
Lucas said council originally planned the increase for April to align with the change in water rates.
"It was to try to make the attempt to make it easier for the people who get the bills to understand so it wouldn’t be two changes spread over two months," Lucas said.
"But as council pointed out, the actual service is not going to be provided until May so the decision of council makes total sense."
Olds has been running a pilot project since the fall of 2012 where 800 blue bins were delivered to the west end of town, Lucas said. The program was an experiment to see if the bins would divert waste from landfills and if residents liked the service.
Studies said the project was successful on both counts, he continued.
Also discussed by council were metered water rates, which will be raised by five cents to $2.66 per cubic metre, starting April 1.
This is to reflect the increased cost Mountain View Regional Water Services will charge the town.
However, this will not affect fixed water rates, which will stay at $9.86 per month.
The deposit residents pay to test their water meters will also increase from $150 to $250. If the meter is found to be accurate, the homeowner will pay for the cost. If the meter is found faulty, the town pays for the testing.
Connecting to the town’s water system is where residents will pay less.
The fee to process a new application to connect will be reduced to $100 from $200.
For an account that is overdue and requires shutoff or reconnection, the cost will be $100, down from $200.
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