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Alba council approves ordinance clarifying polycart placement, council says commercial billing error will be corrected
Summary
The Alba City Council approved Ordinance 2025-001 amending Chapter 44 (Solid Waste) to specify placement and removal requirements for polycarts. Council members clarified the term “secured away from the street” and said a previously raised commercial polycart billing discrepancy has been remedied.
The Alba City Council approved Ordinance 2025-001, amending the city code of ordinances, Chapter 44 Article 5, section 44-261, to address the placement and removal of polycarts (city-provided wheeled trash containers).
The change was put forward after staff and citizens suggested language to make enforcement less punitive and more specific. City staff member Drew reviewed the revised language with council members during the meeting, and a council member asked what “secured away from the street” means in practice. A staff response clarified that “secured away from the street” was intended to mean the cart should not be in a position to roll into the street or otherwise be a nuisance; it does not require a lock or tie-down, the staff answer said.
The ordinance drew some prior public attention: resident Tom Crenshaw had raised a public-comment concern earlier in the meeting about disparities between residential and small-business commercial polycart rates. Council members later reported that the commercial billing discrepancy affecting polycarts had been corrected and that affected commercial customers should see a reduced bill in the next billing cycle.
Councilmember Baldwin moved to approve Ordinance 2025-001; Dr. Lark seconded the motion. The council then voted in favor: Bowman — Yes; Mark — Yes; Adair — Yes; Hoffman — Yes; Parsons — Yes; Swallow — Yes. The motion carried and the ordinance was approved as presented.
Why this matters: The ordinance governs where residents and businesses may place wheeled trash containers; the clarification reduces ambiguity for enforcement and reflects direct citizen feedback about how the rule would be applied. The council’s public confirmation that a commercial billing error was corrected also resolves a recent complaint raised during the meeting’s public-comment period.
Council members and staff did not amend the ordinance text beyond the clarifications discussed. The meeting record shows the council approved the ordinance and recorded the roll-call votes above. The council did not attach an effective date in the discussion on the record; implementation details beyond the text of the ordinance were not specified during the meeting.
