* WARNING: THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL, INTRODUCTORY COPY OF THE BILL.
THE OFFICIAL COPY CONSIDERED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE FIRST READER COPY.
INTRODUCTORY*
CITY OF BALTIMORE
COUNCIL BILL R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: President Young
A RESOLUTION ENTITLED
A COUNCIL RESOLUTION concerning
title
Informational Hearing - One PLUS ONE
FOR the purpose of requesting the Director of Public Works, the Commissioner of Housing, the Chief of the Bureau of Solid Waste, and the Deputy Commissioner for Code Enforcement to report to the City Council on the effectiveness of the City's One PLUS ONE trash and recycling collection program, the progress in fully implementing One PLUS ONE citywide, the number of citations issued for code violations, a comparison of the number of citations issued under the new and old systems, and the revenue collected from One PLUS ONE- related citations.
body
Recitals
On Tuesday, August 3, 2010, the implementation of One PLUS ONE trash and recycling collection in the Downtown Service Area completed the transition of City solid waste collections for the first time in over 30 years from a system in which mixed refuse was collected twice a week and recycling was collected twice a month. The new system of One PLUS ONE - one mixed refuse and one recycling pick up each week - was predicted to support and encourage recycling and to provide for increased and improved services.
In addition, the new plan provided for a complete overhaul of collection routing to optimize crew performance, reduce fleet costs, improve driver and crew safety, and increase route efficiency. For the first time the Bureau of Solid Waste could dedicate crews that had been providing recycling collection to full time street, alley, and seasonal cleaning and collections. Residents are expected to benefit from a quicker response time to citizen service requests and proactive cleaning in their assigned zones.
Bureau of Solid Waste officials report that after a brief transition period, when residents and sanitation crews adjusted to all changes in collections, routes, and schedules, the results of One PLUS ONE exceeded expectations. Residential mixed refuse tonnage decreased - from July through December 2008, Solid Waste collected 100,620 tons of mixed refuse. From July through December 2009, after the implementation of One PLUS ONE, it collected 74,813 tons, a 25% decrease. Recycling increased, achieving the goal of a 55% upswing. Before One PLUS ONE, the bi-weekly average was 646 tons; after implementation it reached 1,007 tons.
In the seven-week period after One PLUS ONE was implemented, the Department of Housing and Community Development Code Enforcement Section generated 14,620 citations, 77% of which were for One PLUS ONE-related offenses. This was a 473% increase over the same period in 2008; of these, 66% were in targeted, litter-challenged neighborhoods. The Baltimore Housing Special Investigations Unit (SIU) issued 434 citations directly related to dumping violations, compared to 7 citations during the same period in 2008.
Sanitation Enforcement has reportedly increased with the addition of more Housing Code Enforcement Officers. More citations are being issued for using trash bags and illegal dumping. The effective enforcement work of Code Enforcement with the "ubiquitous orange tags on trash bags indicating an investigation has taken place has become a well-know symbol to residents that illegal dumping and sanitation code violations will no longer be tolerated in Baltimore City.
The ability of Baltimore City employees and Baltimore City residents to adjust to a new refuse collection and recycling system after ingrained habits of trash disposal in bags, garbage cans, and other less appropriate containers, is laudable. Monitoring of the efficiency of governmental implementation and citizen utilization will ensure that One PLUS ONE continues to succeed.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, That the Director of Public Works, the Commissioner of Housing, the Chief of the Bureau of Solid Waste, and the Deputy Commissioner for Code Enforcement are requested to report to the City Council on the effectiveness of the City's One PLUS ONE trash and recycling collection program, the progress in fully implementing One PLUS ONE citywide, the number of citations issued for code violations, a comparison of the number of citations issued under the new and old systems, and the revenue collected from One PLUS ONE- related citations.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Director of Public Works, the Commissioner of Housing, the Chief of the Bureau of Solid Waste, the Deputy Commissioner for Code Enforcement, and the Mayor's Liaison to the City Council.
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