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Johnson County Recycling District creates 'Bloom Johnson County' program to coordinate cleanups
Summary
The recycling district voted March 9 to create 'Bloom Johnson County,' a countywide cleanup program to coordinate MS4 partners, subsidize tire collection events and pursue grant funding; the motion passed by voice vote.
The Johnson County Recycling District voted March 9 to establish "Bloom Johnson County," a countywide program to coordinate community cleanups, subsidize tire collection events and partner with municipal stormwater (MS4) programs, the district director said.
District Director Jesse told the board the program would use existing grant and education funds to support collection events and outreach and that the district would cover contractor tire-recycling fees for community events. "We will pay for that tire out of the grants and some of the funding that we have from some of the education that we set aside for budget," Jesse said during the presentation.
Why it matters: the program is intended to centralize volunteer cleanups, make tire collection available countywide and create a single brand to support grant applications and community outreach. Jesse described a model that uses MS4s as local "captains" to organize north/central/south events so residents countywide can drop off tires and other bulky items.
Board members discussed practical details before voting, including whether the district’s current interlocal agreement with MS4s covers the proposed work and how to budget for events if an IDM tire grant is not awarded next year. The director said about $7,000 remained from a prior grant and staff would include the program in the 2027 budget to sustain it if outside funding falls through.
A board member moved to establish the Bloom program with MS4 partners and another seconded. The motion passed on a voice vote; the transcript records no roll-call tally. The board directed staff to coordinate interlocal agreement language with MS4 partners and to return with dates and outreach materials.
What’s next: staff will finalize interlocal terms with MS4 partners, schedule pilot events (proposed north/central/south approach), and seek IDM/foundation grant dollars to offset collection costs. The board indicated it expects staff to report back at the next meeting with implementation details.
