Council talks trash, reviews power plan

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Van Wert City Council voted Monday to place an electric energy proposal on the November ballot and did some trash talking with local refuse haulers, although the conversation was a positive one to try and clean up problems in the city.

Council’s Judiciary and Annexation Committee heard a proposal from Bill Bradish, account manager for Palmer Energy Company, which would provide a 3 percent discount on electric generation costs to customers of AEP, if voters approve the measure.

Commissioner Thad Lichtensteiger spoke first, noting that the County Commissioners Association of Ohio has a partnership with Palmer Energy to provide an opportunity for municipalities and other political subdivisions, such as townships, to provide savings on electrical power.

“The whole philosophy, the whole idea, is to bundle up as many consumers of electricity as you can so that gives you some leverage and some strength and some bargaining … the ability to command a better price, is where we’re trying to get to,” Lichtensteiger noted.

Bradish provided information on the government electric aggregation program, noting that a three-year contract negotiated by Palmer Energy with First Energy (Ohio Edison and Toledo Edison) would provide a 3 percent decrease in power generation costs on city AEP customers’ electric bills. The program does not affect electric transmission costs.

“What we’re talking about is getting reduced rates on the generation side of our electric bills,” Bradish said, noting that the program is similar to the natural gas aggregation program that has been around for some time and provides savings for customers through deregulation.

However, that program differs from the electric aggregation program Bradish was promoting in that consumers join that program on an individual basis, something electric power customers can also do, Bradish noted, but added the savings would almost certainly be less than the 3 percent Palmer Energy can provide.

The Palmer Energy program seeks to sign up large numbers of consumers of Ohio’s for-profit electric power companies so that the company’s negotiating power is increased and it can get better deals on electricity from utility companies.

However, bundling entire political subdivisions into the program requires that voters approve the program, which is why Council needed to place the issue on the November 8 general election ballot.

Bradish also noted that individual city residents could opt out of the program, if they wish, but consumers who do so after being a member of the aggregation program longer than 28 days would pay a fee of $25.

Lichtensteiger said the program not only benefits consumers, but would also result in a one-time payment to political subdivisions that participate.

Customers would not see a change in their billing, even though First Energy would be providing the electric power rather than AEP. Bradish said AEP would also have to provide repair service to customers participating in the program.

Also Monday, Council members discussed ways to deal with the problem of trash being placed at the curb too early, or not collected because residents do not contract for trash hauling services, with the result that animals get into the trash bags and scatter garbage on city streets and in residents’ yards and on sidewalks.

Representatives of several local trash hauling companies were at the meeting to hear Fourth Ward councilman-elect Pete Weir’s presentation on the problem.

The discussion was mostly positive, with city officials seeking input from trash haulers on what can be done to deal with the trash problem. Although haulers noted it wasn’t their problem, per se, they did have some positive suggestions on what could be deal with the problem.

One suggestion was, because much of the problem stems from renters who don’t contract for trash collection services, but put garbage at the curb nevertheless, that rental property owners be the ones to provide trash collection, and could then pass the cost on to their renters.

Safety-Service Director Jay Fleming said he felt having so many companies providing trash collection services confused the issue and made it more difficult to come up with solutions to the problem, George Brake, Van Wert Solid Waste Management coordinator, said having so many trash collection companies was a positive, since it resulted in more competitive rates and better service overall.

A second meeting on the subject will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, August 22.

In addition to approving measures that allow placement of the aggregation electric energy issue on the November ballot, Council also took several other legislative actions, including approving an ordinance that would provide non-bargaining employees of the service and safety departments with a 2 percent raise and adopting a measure to have American Legal Publishing update the city’s codified ordinances

Council also introduced legislation that would change the city’s regulations to allow personal use of city-owned vehicles providing drivers of those vehicles log all personal miles driven. Property and Equipment Committee Chair Joi Mergy, whose committee heard the issue, moved to introduce the legislation but also said she was against personal use of city-owned vehicles. Second Ward Councilman Kirby Kelly also voted against the measure during an advisory vote on the issue.

Safety-Service Director Jay Fleming provided an update on the Shannon Street reconstruction project, reporting that curbs will be poured from the railroad tracks to Westwood Drive Wednesday and Thursday of this week, with other work also to be done in an effort to reopen the street prior to the closing of the Ervin Road intersection with Shannon for a month, starting August 8, weather permitting.