Waste district planning equipment upgrade

Berryville Mayor Tim McKinney also serves as chairman of the Carroll County Solid Waste District, a job he says can sometimes be as time-consuming as serving as mayor.

McKinney spoke to the Carroll County Quorum Court at its regular meeting on Tuesday, July 16, asking the court to approve a resolution that would allow the solid waste district to issue bonds to finance an equipment upgrade.

“Solid waste in general has been a tough business these last few years,” McKinney said, telling the county’s 11 justices of the peace that the solid waste district has been operating at a loss.

“We’ve basically been losing money for three years,” McKinney said. “That all started when we started trying to expand into the county to provide service in the county to all the customers.”

Servicing the entire county significantly increases the cost of vehicle maintenance, McKinney said.

“A set of tires in town will last six months on a truck and it’ll last two weeks out in the county,” he said.

Hiring and keeping qualified drivers who carry a commercial driver’s license is also a challenge, McKinney said, recalling one recent morning when the solid waste district had eight employees call in sick and three trucks out of service because of maintenance and repair needs.

The solid waste district workers’ compensation claims “have just gotten completely out of control,” McKinney said.

McKinney said the solid waste district has increased wages and adjusted customer rates “considerably,” including implementing a system of zones in which some customers pay a higher rate based on their location.

“Our mission as Carroll County Solid Waste, is to break even. We’re not a for-profit,” McKinney said. “We put everything we do back into our business.”

Now, McKinney said, the district wants to upgrade its fleet of equipment to reduce maintenance costs.

“Our current cost for maintenance is running between $40,000 and $50,000 a month,” he said. “We average two to three trucks down a day.”

McKinney said the district hopes to switch to automatic-load trucks that will help it recruit and retain drivers.

“What we’re asking the quorum court to do tonight is pass this resolution, which will allow us to issue bonds to start replacing equipment,” he said. “It’s through a bond company, but a local bank is going to pick up all the bonds locally.

McKinney said the solid waste district would be completely responsible for paying off the bonds.

“It does not obligate the county in any way,” he said, calling the resolution a formality.

“Solid waste is very important,” McKinney said. “… We’re trying to provide service for the entire county, at a reasonable rate.”

The quorum court approved the resolution by a vote of 11-0.