Tend to your trash or pay for it

The penalties cometh. Keep it clean and don’t overdo it, or it will cost ya. That’s the message the city and their refuse collection franchisee, Waste Management, want you to know.

Starting later this year residential customers who gorge their garbage cans to overflowing or throw contaminating materials into their recycling waste-wheelers will be charged a $14.30 penalty, according to Karen Stern, director of communications for the company. The exact rollout schedule is unknown because they are still tinkering with cameras and global positioning system (GPS) technology on their trucks, but Stern expects it to be ready to roll by this summer. But before anyone gets spanked with a fine, the company says it will mount a massive public information campaign to educate customers about the dos and don’ts of refuse etiquette. You may ask, does something like a stray chicken bone amongst the plastic water bottles constitute “contamination?” No, but maybe a whole chicken does.

Stern says they are looking for “gross contamination” and the fines are a way of reducing what they call “abusive use of the container.” As an example, she says someone actually threw three dead goats into a recycling bin. That’s nasty with a capital “N!” But the number one contaminate are plastic bags, Stern says, so bagging up recyclables and putting them into the can is a definite no-no and will earn you a fine.

Half-full beverage bottles and full jars of peanut butter are also on the naughty list. Commercial customers in town have learned these lessons the hard way. Many restaurants and other commercial and industrial clients were clobbered with penalties starting last year, some totaling thousands of dollars.

Last we heard the city has collected well over $300k in fines for trash indiscretions. So what happens to all that extra cash? The city gets a cut of it in the form of a franchise fee, and the rest goes to the company to offset their additional costs of processing the stuff. “It’s not a profit margin” for the company, says Stern.

Interestingly, the city council was briefed on the new levies, but they did not vote on them, according to Public Works Director

Charlie Swimley. “They are imposable as part of (the company’s) franchise agreement, if needed, under special rates and charges which are subject to City review,” he says.

City Council Member Joanne Mounce says she “did not realize the ramifications at the time” when she gave her tacit approval of the fines. She insists the city should revisit the issue, and in some cases refund customers for fines they’ve already paid.

NEW HIRES: City clerk interviews are at the end of this month and interviews for the parks, rec and cultural services director are pending, but no date yet. City Clerk Jennifer Ferraiolo recently retired as did PRCS chief Jeff Hood, thus creating two openings.

RUN FOR YOUR LIFE: The city recently posted signs at Lodi Lake warning that a mountain lion has been spotted in the nature area and to take appropriate precautions. Runner and former Lodi resident Layla Bohm quipped, “That’s one way to get some speed work in!” True, but the city advises people not to run if they see such a creature. That would be hard to do, no?

SPEAKING THEIR MINDS: What’s the answer to the homeless problem? Students from Lodi and Bear Creek high schools offered their thoughts to members of the Lodi Lions Club recently during the annual student speakers contest. While there were arguably no breakthrough solutions, one student had an interesting proposal: place homeless individuals on a farm where they would live, grow their own food and be paid for their labor. Interesting approach. There are three levels of the contest and local club winners will advance to the next stage. The national winner will receive a $10,000 scholarship in addition to the prize money collected at each lower level. It all totals about $21k for the grand prize winner. The Lodi noon club awards up to $4,000 per year in local scholarships.

IN THE MONEY: Farmers and Merchants Bank recently announced record earnings for last year, $56 million. The company’s stock, if you can get it, sells for about $765 per share. Not bad for a hometown bank, which isn’t very small anymore. They have some 32 locations reaching all the way into the Bay Area and is the 13th largest bank lender to agriculture. (Full disclosure: Yours Truly owns a couple shares).

CULINARY CORNER: The popular downtown eatery Saigon Grill has apparently closed. It is unknown if it is a temporary closure. A call to the restaurant found a recorded message saying they are not accepting calls at this time — not a good sign. … The new Guantonio’s Wood Fired Pizza on the corner of Lockeford and California should be open within the next few weeks. They have been advertising for new employees recently. They bill themselves as “a beer and wine eating place.” … It appears construction is finally underway on the Lodi Beer Company expansion project. They will be expanding their facilities into the space on the corner of School and Oak.

HAPPY HOUR: Local wineries hauled in the gold, silver and Best of Show medals with both hands at this year’s San Francisco Chronicle wine competition, known for being “the largest American wine tasting competition in the world.” It was stiff competition with some 1,500 wineries submitting over 5,000 wines for judging. Among the local gold medal winners were Oak Farm, Peirano Estate Vineyards, Klinker Brick Winery, Barsetti Vineyards (Galt), and St. Amant Winery. Best of Show awards were given to Oak Farm Vineyards, Oak Ridge, Klinker Brick Winery, St. Amant Winery, Harney Lane, Michael-David, and LangeTwins Family Winery and Vineyards. Further affirmation that Lodi wines rock.

VALENTINES THOUGHT: A message posted on the Indian Hills (Colorado) Community Center marquee: “Whenever I try to eat healthy, a chocolate bar looks at me and Snickers.”

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Steve is a former newspaper publisher and lifelong Lodian whose column appears most Tuesdays in the News-Sentinel. Write to Steve at aboutlodi@ gmail.com.