(A) City responsibility defined. The city shall provide for the collection of solid waste as follows:
(1) The city provides normal curbside solid waste collection, special bulky item pickup, tree limb pickup, and leaf collection. Loose leaves are collected during a publicly announced and defined time period in the fall, as needed. Recyclable items are collected at the Guthrie Opportunity Center on Nutter Drive during business hours.
(2) The city authorizes industrial and large institutional solid waste generators to independently manage their solid waste disposal, provided proof is submitted, upon request, showing that the waste is disposed of in accordance with this chapter. All other solid waste transportation and disposal requirements of this chapter shall apply to these industrial and large institutional entities.
(B) Universal collection. Every dwelling unit, commercial enterprise, or other waste producing entity within the city shall subscribe to the waste collection services authorized by this chapter. Every dwelling unit in the city and every commercial, industrial and institutional producer served by the city’s collection service shall be billed by the city and shall make payment to the city. The charges for those producers who do not have either a city water or electric account for the address being served shall be billed to and paid by the landlord.
(C) Collection points.
(1) All solid waste, including yard waste and bulky rubbish, but excluding solid waste stored for collection in city provided dumpsters, shall be placed at the edge of the street, no closer than the property owner’s side of the street curb or ditch, for collection. Any solid waste containers, tree limbs, yard wastes, or other solid waste permitted by this ordinance to be placed at the said location for collection shall be so placed by 7:00 a.m. local time on the scheduled collection day, but not more than 24 hours before collection. All containers shall be removed from the said location no later than 24 hours after collection.
(2) For residents and businesses located at the Court Square, the 100 and 200 blocks of North Third Street, the 100 blocks of East and West Flaget Avenues, and the 100 block of the north side of East and West Stephen Foster Avenues, solid waste will be collected from the alley or from city dumpsters rather than the curb or edge of the street. The only exception to these rules is for service by agreement.
(D) City solid waste collection services and items that shall be placed at the collection point for each service.
(1) Normal solid waste collection. The normal weekly collection service shall be used by all customers only for the disposal of commercial and residential solid waste, and for residential customers for the disposal of yard waste, and small bulky rubbish which includes such items as small household furniture, brush, small tree limbs (less than four inches in diameter), shrubbery and the like no longer than 48 inches and either tied in bundles or placed in solid waste containers, the weight of any container, bundle, or item being limited to 40 pounds.
(2) Special bulky rubbish and tree limb collection. Customers must call City Hall to request tree limbs or bulky item pickup. Tree limbs shall be no larger than six inches in diameter and ten feet long. Neither tree limbs nor bulky rubbish waste material shall be stacked in more than one pile that exceeds four cubic yards which is approximately the size of a pickup load. Such items shall be placed at the collection point only on the regularly scheduled day of the week for normal collection. Bulky items or yard waste shall not be picked up from alleyways except where alleyways are wider than ten feet. In the event of a storm related emergency the Mayor may order an exception to the quantity and weight limits stated above. The duration of the emergency status shall be defined by the Mayor or by the City Council as necessary.
(a) The intent of the bulky rubbish collection service is to pick up the occasional broken appliance or furniture item, NOT to relieve any renter, land lord, or property owner the responsibility of moving unwanted or left items from a move or eviction. No set-outs will be picked up. See subsection (K) solid waste subject to specific rules.
(b) Tree limbs collection is intended for typical landscaping maintenance, broken limbs after a storm, minor trimming etc. The service is not to be used to remove debris from major tree trimming activities, whole tree removal, or relieve a professional tree service the responsibility of hauling away that which has been cut.
(3) Fall leaf collection service. Leaves may be placed in piles at the edge of the streets for collection but only during the fall and early winter during weeks designated each year by the Director. At all other times leaves shall by treated as yard waste and placed in solid waste containers for collection.
(E) Authority for collectors to enter private property. Solid Waste employees of the city are hereby authorized to enter upon private property for the purpose of collecting solid waste as required by this chapter. Solid waste collectors shall not enter dwelling units or other buildings for the purpose of collecting solid waste.
(F) Collection frequency. The following collection frequencies shall apply to collections of solid waste within the city:
(1) All residential solid waste, other than bulky rubbish in excess of 40 pounds, shall be collected one time each week. All multiple housing facility and commercial solid waste shall be collected at least once weekly and may be collected at such lesser intervals as may be fixed by/or approved by the Director or requested by the customer upon determination that such lesser intervals are necessary for the preservation of the health and/or safety of the public. All residential collections shall be made between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. If inclement weather endangers the safe collection of solid waste, services may be discontinued and will resume as weather permits.
(2) Collections will not be made on the following eight major holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, the day following Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas.
(3) Collections for such holidays will be made one business day later unless otherwise specified by the officer in responsible charge. Collections will be made on other holidays unless otherwise specified by the officer in responsible charge.
(G) Ownership of solid waste. All garbage and refuse placed in authorized storage containers and placed at the point of collection defined in § 51.01, shall become the property of the city and no person shall be allowed to separate, carry off or dispose of the same without the written permission of the Director.
(H) Collector’s responsibility defined. Solid waste employees of the city shall be responsible for the collection of solid waste from the designated pickup location to the transportation vehicle provided the solid waste was stored in compliance with the provisions set forth in this chapter. Any spillage or blowing litter caused as a result of the duties of the solid waste collector shall be collected and placed in the transportation vehicle by the solid waste collector.
(I) Customer quantity limitations. The fees established in § 51.09 are for the following quantities of solid waste collection:
(1) Residential units: three solid waste containers, as described elsewhere in this chapter, per week.
(2) Small commercial solid waste producer: the same quantity.
(3) Large commercial solid waste producer: The cubic yards that can be stored in the requested dumpster multiplied by the number of collections requested each week.
(J) Prohibitions. The following items shall not be deposited in solid waste containers and shall not be collected by the city:
(1) Hazardous waste such as syringes, used needles, vials or petroleum products;
(2) Liquid waste such as paint, poisons, acids, explosives, caustics, infectious or biohazard waste materials;
(3) Tires or car parts;
(4) Construction and demolition waste of such size and weight that would cause damage to equipment, such as rolls of carpet or pads;
(5) Batteries;
(6) Any burning or smoldering materials;
(7) Items left by tenants or eviction; and
(8) Professional cut tree limbs, trunks, root balls, etc.
The Solid Waste Coordinator for Nelson County (502-348-1876) may be consulted for the proper disposal of all waste streams listed above and those prohibited by state and local regulations at the Nelson County Landfill.
(K) Solid waste subject to specific rules. Customers may themselves deliver to the county solid waste disposal facility, or privately contract for said delivery, any solid waste weighing in excess of or of a greater volume than what the city has defined as exceeding the permissible sold waste streams to be collected by the city. Certain appliances may be taken to the metal recycling center on Spencer Mattingly Lane.
(Ord. B2005-22, passed 7-26-05; Am. Ord. B2012-15, passed 8-14-12; Am. Ord. B2013-03, passed 3-26-13; Am. Ord. B2015-35, passed 12-8-15; Am. Ord. B2018-05, passed 3-6-18)