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Council discusses renewal of disposal agreement with Grand Forks landfill and tables items until Aug. 19
Summary
Staff explained a renewal of the solid waste disposal agreement that assigns municipal waste to the City of Grand Forks landfill (the draft shows a 10-year tenure but staff said the city is not locked in); the council voted to table the related agenda items until the Aug. 19 meeting to allow staff time to explore options amid upcoming departmental vacancies.
City staff presented a proposed renewal of the solid waste disposal and management agreement that would assign East Grand Forks’ municipal solid waste to the City of Grand Forks landfill.
“It's just to let them know that we will be dumping our garbage refuse at their landfill,” staff member Mr. Storall said, describing the arrangement as a routine assignment rather than a lock-in of particular rates or terms. He added the city pays the going rate and that rate updates are handled year to year.
Councilmember Dale Helms asked why the tenure was changed to 10 years; Mr. Storall said the longer term does not prevent the city from stopping the agreement if needed. Helms also asked whether there were reasonable alternatives to the Grand Forks landfill; staff said Countywide’s facility does not accept municipal solid waste but could accept other materials when economical.
Because staff requested more time to evaluate options — including considering planned staffing changes (four vacancies) and potential restructuring for efficiency — the council called a special meeting, then voted to table items one and two until the regular meeting on Aug. 19. The motion to table was moved by Riapel and seconded by Puck Shavinsky; the council approved the measure by voice vote.
Next steps: the items scheduled for the special meeting will be pushed to the Aug. 19 regular meeting while staff continues to examine alternatives and staffing implications.
