Council discusses options for downtown dumpster service and rollout-can phaseout

Mount Holly City Manager Mister Blanton presented options and questions for council about downtown sanitation service, including whether the city should provide shared dumpsters or require restaurants to use private dumpster service.

Blanton told council that current monthly charges for the city's rollout can service are $11.91 per container. He and staff surveyed 28 downtown businesses and reported counts of containers: 16 businesses use one can, five use two cans, two use three cans, two use four cans and three use five cans. Blanton said the city does not provide dumpster pickup for the private dumpster sites behind downtown businesses; those are contracted privately with providers such as Waste Pro, Waste Management or Republic.

Blanton described examples from nearby municipalities: Gastonia provides municipal dumpster services subsidized in part by a municipal service tax and charges roughly $50 per business for shared dumpster service; Belmont uses a cooperative waste program with annual charges that range from $300 to $500; Bessemer City provides twice‑weekly pickup for rollout cans. Blanton said offering dumpster service would require the council to define the downtown district boundaries, secure access easements for dumpster pads on private property, and negotiate services with third‑party providers.

Council members raised several points: Mister Huff and Mister Meadows supported exploring shared dumpsters and noted operational efficiencies and aesthetic benefits of eliminating many small rollout cans. Mister Meadows asked staff to explore an ordinance that would require restaurants to have dumpster service. Miss Harris asked whether the city would take on the cost; staff said no, not currently, and that existing conversations (for example about a Holland Building pad) had not produced an agreement. Mister Blanton said he would check existing budget items and follow up with additional research and recommendations.