Warrick County Solid Waste board approves purchase of two roll-off containers, hears recycling update

Warrick County Solid Waste District Management Board members on Thursday approved buying two used 20-yard roll-off containers from Allen County and reviewed operational metrics showing low contamination and full staffing at the county recycling center.

The board voted unanimously to purchase the containers, which the superintendent described as in good condition and available for a combined asking price of $10,000 (or $6,000 each). The containers, the superintendent said, have 2-inch ball hitches that will require minor adjustments to county trailers and would be cleaned, rebranded and deployed to smaller elementary schools that lack space for larger roll-off units.

The purchase was introduced during the superintendent's report. Freddie, the recycling center superintendent, told the board that Allen County had maintained the containers while in storage and that cosmetic cleaning, minor rust treatment and latch maintenance would be sufficient to put them back into service. Freddie said Reagan identified an available line item in the district budget to fund the purchase.

The superintendent also reviewed recent operations data. He said the district processed 22,203,347 pounds (11,102 tons) and has shipped 649 trucks since the program began, noting that for the most recent month contamination was minimal with only one contaminated load. Freddie said the district recently stopped accepting deliveries from one recurring hauler after determining that hauler's loads had high contamination rates.

Freddie also reported that all three full-time positions at the recycling center are now filled. On capital work, Adam (staff) said he had not heard further updates on the Phase 2 electrical work but noted he had received an invoice indicating Sims engineering was 80% complete. No further action on the electrical work was taken at the meeting.

Board members discussed whether to update the district purchasing handbook. The board agreed to wait and consider aligning the district policy with the county's updated purchasing ordinance rather than drafting a separate policy from scratch. Freddie said he would work with Adam and Reagan to modernize the handbook for 2025–2026.

Votes at a glance: - Approval of minutes from the August meeting — motion carried unanimously. - Approval of claims totaling $211,920.16 — motion carried unanimously. The superintendent clarified two earlier claims (12371 and 12373); claim 12373 was for $428.96 and an additional small payment was made to correct an invoicing error, with the vendor issuing a credit on a subsequent invoice. - Purchase of two 20-yard roll-off containers from Allen County for a combined asking price of $10,000 — motion carried unanimously. The board authorized using an identified budget line item to complete the purchase. - Motion to adjourn — carried unanimously.

The board did not receive any public comments at the meeting. The board directed staff to proceed with the approved purchase and to continue work on the handbook update and coordination on the Phase 2 electrical engineering; no additional formal actions were taken on the electrical work at this meeting.