Harrisburg trash cans
Harrisburg’s neighboring municipalities will soon see new faces on trash pickup day.
At a special legislative session on Thursday, Harrisburg City Council approved two resolutions to begin collecting trash and recycling for Paxtang and Penbrook boroughs.
In total, the city now has intergovernmental agreements with three boroughs for waste pickup. Since June 2019, Harrisburg has handled Steelton’s refuse.
“I really believe that this regional approach to the delivery of services is particularly well suited for Pennsylvania where we have so many different municipalities in close proximity,” Mayor Eric Papenfuse said during a previous council work session. “We don’t all need to be duplicating services.”
Over the next five years, the city will gain over $2 million in annual revenue from the agreements, Papenfuse said during his budget presentation on Nov. 24.
Services will begin on Jan. 1, according to Isaac Gaylord, deputy city solicitor. Trash containers will be distributed by the end of the month, Papenfuse added.
Both Penbrook and Paxtang will pay Harrisburg directly, and according to Papenfuse, the cost is less than they would’ve paid to a private hauler. Residents in those boroughs will pay for trash collection as part of their property taxes. Papenfuse said that this guarantees the city will receive the full amount due because they aren’t relying on individual households to pay their trash bills.
An additional six sanitation workers and one sanitation manager will join the city’s Department of Public Works to assist with the new routes.
“I totally agree with the vision of shared services within municipalities as a benefit to the entire region,” council member Dave Madsen said.
In other council action, Harrisburg will continue a professional services contract with Maverick Strategies for lobbying-related services. The resolution passed with a 4-3 vote. The contract will last one-year at a cost of $5,000 per month.
Additionally, council voted to apply for a Driving PA Forward—Level 2 EV Charging Rebate. If granted, the amount of $36,000 would go towards installing four electric vehicle charging stations on City Island.
Council also chose to continue an agreement with the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area to provide services to Harrisburg’s Animal Control Program for another year.
To watch past Harrisburg City Council meetings, visit the city’s YouTube channel.
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