Crown Point garbage fee set to rise to $19.25 a month

The Crown Point Common Council approved garbage administrative fees at a council meeting Oct. 5, which include new rates for transportation and COVID-19 fees.

The total, which includes 96-gallon toter trash cans for residents and the COVID fees, is $19.25 a month, Mayor David Uran said. The discussion comes after the Board of Public Works and Safety approved the extension of the city’s garbage collection contract with Republic Services at a meeting Sept. 23.

In place since 2014, homeowners originally paid $13.42 and has increased 20 or 21 cents each year since 2015.

Documents to solidify the renewal of the six-year contract with Republic Services will be brought to a meeting next month, Uran said.

“In the November meeting … we’ll bring the documents to the council to memorialize that,” Uran said, noting the change wouldn’t take place until Jan. 1.

Also at the Oct. 5 meeting the council discussed an ordinance amendment regarding connection and meter fees for residents, stating reasonable access would be necessary in these fees.

Reasonable access is the key, Uran said, and if homeowners are unable to connect to utility lines on the date of the adoption of the ordinance, they would not receive the new fees and would instead continue paying the old fees.

“If the city did not provide access, then we would go back to the homeowner that has now chosen to hook into whatever infrastructure is now present there, as the ability to come in under the old clause,” David Nicholls, the city attorney, said.

“In the event there is no infrastructure there, or the infrastructure was there and the choice was made apparently by the homeowner not to access that ability to connect, then they would come in at the new charge.”

Al Stong, president of Commonwealth Engineers, also noted reasonable access to the utilities would be important in the connection and meter fees.

“If the water or sewer line is in front of your home, where you could have a service lateral, or a service connection, readily brought to you from that line, that’s reasonable access,” Stong said.

“It’s not reasonable if the utility had to be extended just to get to your home or residential unit.”

The council made a motion to adopt the amendment to the ordinance, and will continue to discuss it, they said.

The council approved a change in vendor fees for the Winter Market, which will now take place in the Sparta Dome instead of Bulldog Park.

Special Events Director Diana Bosse asked the council to approve a change from $50 to $75 for vendors at the market. With the venue change, vendors will be given more space, Bosse said, noting the space at Sparta Dome will allow for additional vendors.

The additional $25 per vendor will go to the Sparta Dome, Bosse said.

“Last year we did it at Bulldog Park and it was a really tight and confined space,” Bosse said. “We just thought that having the Sparta Dome with a lot larger area would be better.”

The Winter Market will take place Nov. 28.