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Waukegan committee discusses downtown recycling pilot; resident urges citywide expansion
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Summary
The committee discussed a downtown recycling pilot with possible expansion to multifamily housing and businesses and considered an ordinance requiring any company that collects garbage in Waukegan to offer recycling; resident Mister Edwards urged the city to expand efforts beyond downtown and offered volunteer support.
The Waukegan Environmental and Sustainability Committee discussed a planned downtown recycling pilot and options to expand recycling access citywide during its March 2 meeting. Committee members and a resident urged that recycling not be limited to a small downtown strip and suggested ways to make recycling available to businesses and large apartment buildings.
"We don't want to just talk about recycle bins just for Downtown Waukegan because it's more than the city than just Downtown Waukegan," said resident Mister Edwards, who urged aldermen to help organize cleanups and offered to recruit 50 to 100 volunteers for neighborhood trash pickup. He added concerns about panhandling and visible trash along Grand and Green Bay roads and called on landlords to maintain properties.
Chairman Florian and others discussed starting a downtown pilot to "see how it goes" and possibly expanding the program to multifamily properties and businesses. Chairman Florian suggested one approach: requiring companies that collect garbage in Waukegan to offer recycling to their customers, but corporation counsel or staff cautioned that the city may only require that when incentives are involved or when the city is writing terms into an agreement.
Alderman Turner asked that staff arrange a presentation and a tour of a recycling facility so committee members can better understand how collected materials are processed and where they go. "I would like to tour the facility... What happens to that stuff that we put in the recycle bin?" Turner asked. Chairman Florian said the committee can arrange the presentation.
No ordinance was introduced at the meeting and no formal decision was made to expand the pilot beyond downtown; staff said they would continue discussions with Public Works and bring more information back to a future meeting.
