ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, September 18, 1996 TAG: 9609180123
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHRISTINA NUCKOLS STAFF WRITER
Vinton will sit tight for now in what is shaping up to be a confrontation between Roanoke and Roanoke County officials over whether the Roanoke Valley Resource Authority should have the power to collect trash.
Vinton Town Council voted to table the matter after a public hearing on the issue Tuesday night. However, three of the five members took time to chide Browning Ferris Industries, the private trash hauler that is fighting the proposal to change the authority's charter to allow trash collection.
The charter cannot be amended unless all three member localities agree, and Roanoke City Council voted 4-3 to reject the proposal Monday night. Nevertheless, Bob Johnson, chairman of the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors, said in a telephone interview Tuesday that he expects a vote in favor of the charter changes at the board's next meeting, set for 7 p.m. Sept. 24.
City Council members still have time to reconsider their positions on the issue, and Johnson said some of their concerns could be addressed. For example, he said, the authority's board of directors could be changed to include only elected officials, resolving an issue raised by Mayor David Bowers.
"I would pray that they would reconsider," Johnson said. "I have to be optimistic, because if I don't, then we're staring down a shotgun from the wrong end."
John Hubbard, executive director of the resource authority, said the charter changes would accomplish two goals. First, the authority could become the agent for regional residential garbage collection in the Roanoke Valley. Second, the changes would give the authority the option to compete with private haulers of commercial refuse if those companies diverted trash to out-of-state landfills. BFI has already begun to do so, and Hubbard said the practice could reduce revenue generated by the Smith Gap landfill and ultimately endanger the authority's ability to make its annual $3 million in debt payments. If the authority could not make those payments, the three member localities would have to make up the shortfall.
The proposal to change the authority's charter came out of a city-county study group that has been looking at options for regionalizing trash collection. Those options include giving collection duties to the city, the county, a private company or the resource authority. However, the authority is prohibited by its charter from collecting trash.
The issue has been complicated by BFI's proposal to take over the city's residential garbage collection. Roanoke City Council set up a study committee to seek bids and determine whether an outside entity could do the job for less.
"I'm not above having the county bid on that," Johnson said.
Johnson said BFI representatives also have approached county officials about privatizing residential collection. At Vinton's council hearing Tuesday night, it was clear the company hasn't shown an interest in the town's residential collection, and that had Mayor C.R. Hill feeling snubbed.
"I had not heard a thing from BFI," he said. "It looks to me like BFI would be interested in coming to talk to the town of Vinton, but obviously not."
Council member Billy Obenchain joined in to criticize the company for newspaper advertisements that suggested the city could save money by privatizing trash collection and use the savings to pay for air-conditioning schools.
"Quite frankly, I think that was low," he said.
A third member, Joe Bush, accused BFI of wanting to compete with municipalities for residential collection, while at the same time it is opposed to competition in the commercial sector.
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