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City council hears from Advanced Disposal, debates food truck ordinance, COVID-19 resolution

Roll named Northwest Ward Alderman, recycling will continue through August

Justin Addison Editor/Publisher
Posted 8/11/20

Citizens in the city’s Northwest Ward have a new representative on the City Council. Former Fayette Advertiser publisher Pat Roll was nominated and approved for the seat at the council’s …

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City council hears from Advanced Disposal, debates food truck ordinance, COVID-19 resolution

Roll named Northwest Ward Alderman, recycling will continue through August

Posted

Citizens in the city’s Northwest Ward have a new representative on the City Council. Former Fayette Advertiser publisher Pat Roll was nominated and approved for the seat at the council’s August 4 regular meeting.

Mr. Roll replaces former Alderman Larry Dimond, who resigned July 30 due do declining health.

Roll will fill the seat through the end of the term, which expires in April 2021. “I’m happy to serve the community,” Roll said.

Trash service to resume

bulk pickup

Advanced Disposal representative Dan Buckley assured the Fayette City Council that bulk item pickup will resume as it has in the past and the recycling service will continue through the end of August. Buckley appeared before the council August 4 at the request of the city which had expressed grievances with the trash pickup company during its prior meeting.

City personnel and alderman at their July 30 meeting explained how they had received complaints that Advanced Disposal was not picking up bulk items. The contract between the city and the garbage company, which terminates May 31 of next year, stipulates that each household is allowed to dispose of one large item per week. Advanced Disposal had not been picking up the large items, and contended that residents needed to call and make appointments for such items.

“Based on the contract, there's nothing stated that you have to call in for those items,” said Southwest Ward Alderwoman Hope Smith. She said personally on two occasions her bulk items were not picked up. 

East Ward Alderwoman Stephanie Ford echoed those comments and said that a neighbor of hers has had a large item for nearly three months without a pickup.

Mr. Buckley agreed with the city that those items need to be picked up, but noted that his driver has difficulty doing so by himself. He did say that another driver does come through to assist. “Those guys could do a better job of that,” he said.

“Bottom line is everybody gets one bulk (item) a week,” Mr. Buckley said. “Our job is to keep Fayette clean.”

It was also announced at the council’s July 30 meeting that recycling pickup would cease. Mr. Buckley explained that the company is ending the program because recycling centers have closed down and there are none left in the vicinity. Advanced Disposal previously would take all recyclables to Endless Options’s recycling center in Fayette, but the operation closed in February when the bottom fell out of the recycling industry. And another center in Chillicothe has dropped its recycling service. 

Advanced Disposal announced in June that it would be bought out by larger competitor Waste Management. Mr. Buckley said that once that merger is complete, it’s possible that a new option may become available. The loss of recycling service will mean that households here will each save $1.05 per month on trash service.

Council refines 

food truck ordinance

The Fayette City Council further explored the adoption of an ordinance to regulate food trucks in town during its August 4 regular meeting. The subject has been a point of discussion as two food trucks have been regularly setting up shop on the downtown square during lunch hours.

The goal of the ordinance seems to be the make certain that the purveyors of food trucks are paying for business licenses, collecting and paying local sales tax, and have proper health inspections. The council has decided to charge $36 for a yearly business license, the same for any business here, rather than offering tiers of duration at separate prices. The ordinance also dictates that licenses will not be granted unless all taxes, fees, inspections, and further obligations be paid and met.

Sanitary inspections from the county health department are required. Both trucks that have been doing business in Fayette have been inspected.

The orientation of food trucks parked on the square was also discussed. At times lines of customers have trailed into the roadways. The city wants the trucks to face the sidewalk, so as to keep customers out of the streets to ensure a safe flow of traffic.

Aldermen declined to pass the ordinance so as to further refine the wording. The council is expected to pass the amended version at its next meeting on August 18.

Aldermen debate 

COVID-19 resolution

Council members on Tuesday, August 4, debated a proposed resolution affirming the city’s stance to encourage citizens to maintain social distancing and to wear masks in an effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The verbiage of the resolution was discussed and changes were made so the resolution would not be interpreted as mandatory, but rather a suggestion to be mindful of the recommendations made by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

“The reason we brought this up is pretty simple,” said Mayor Kevin Oeth. “We’ve got a new mayor, we’ve got a new city administrator, we’ve got a new clerk, we’ve got new students coming into Fayette, we’ve got old students returning to Fayette. We've got lots of parents who are wondering about their children coming here. CMU has done a great job. They've got a great plan. I have spent a good deal of time talking to various parents, and I’ve talked to President Drake…just asking them what their thoughts are. I think the big thing is that some of them think we may be sweeping this under the carpet.

“This is in no way telling people that they have to wear a mask,” said Mr. Oeth.

East Ward Alderwoman Stephanie Ford took exception to the word, “encouraged,” being used in the resolution. She suggests the term makes the resolution sound as more of a mandate than a suggestion. “I will vote ‘no,’ because I don’t like the way it’s worded,” she said.

Southwest Ward Alderwoman Hope Smith asserted that if the city council puts forth the resolution with the word, “encourage,” that it would be further expected for all city personnel and alderpersons to wear masks while in public. “To me, I feel like that makes it seem like we need to set an example while we’re out in public. I’m not doing that.”

Mrs. Ford suggested the resolution to call for citizens to make themselves aware of recommendations by the CDC. “That way it’s not making them feel like we’re trying to parent them. We’re all adults, and we all have constitutional rights.

“I don’t feel like we’ve swept it under the rug,” she added, and also expressed concern about the large number of college students returning to Fayette in the coming weeks.

“If we end up with a massive outbreak here, we really need to have something saying, ‘we did our best’,” said Mr. Oeth.

Ultimately it was decided to remove the word, “encouraged.”

“We’re all adults and we all know what those recommendations are,” Mrs. Ford said. “This isn’t Columbia. It’s not going to fly here, the way Columbia is doing it. We would have a lot of upset people.”

Central Methodist is at the forefront of most universities across the nation with regard to preparedness for students returning to campus. The college will test every student upon arrival and will require masks to be worn in all buildings, including residence halls. The university has deployed a slew of cutting edge technology to discern if students have become ill and has policies in place should that occur.

So far, all staff and faculty have been tested. CMU has had four cases of COVID-19 on campus, all of which are recovered. Students have been allowed to bring to campus many of their belongings ahead of time to allow for fewer people on campus for move-in day.

In other business:

The council approved the appointment of Jon Sutton to the Planning & Zoning Commission.

The council approved City Administrator Tyler Griffith's appointment to the Municipal Electric Utility Commission.

Sue Miller, the Fayette’s Certified Public Accountant, presented to the council the city’s financial statement.

The next regular meeting of the city council is scheduled for August 18 at 7 p.m. in City Hall.

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