The next time you contemplate trash day, you may want to ponder whether or not you could live with just one pick-up per week or you absolutely, positively, must have two per week.

We have been reporting for a few weeks now that DeKalb County is lowering the number of trash pick ups from two times per week to once per week. Yard waste and recycling will continue to be picked up one time per week each - just as they are now. The kicker is that if it is decided to keep the rates the same as they are now - we will get 25% less service for the same money - 50% less service when looking at trash pick-up alone. 

According to Mayor J Max Davis, our City Administration will be able to decide for us whether we accept the plan as proposed by DeKalb County or whether we want to pay extra for exactly the same service we enjoy now. This is why you need to take 5 minutes to let the City know your preference and have your opinion counted.

Mayor Davis said during a January 22 City Council Meeting that he thinks the one day per week pick-up may lead to really stinky trash and that he prefers the two day per week trash pick-up - but does understand that paying $40 more per year is an issue as well for some citizens.

The two likely scenarios are:

1. 1 Recycling, 1 Yard Waste, 1 Trash Pickup
   = Costs stay the same, lose 1 Trash Pickup.
2. 1 Recycling, 1 Yard Waste, 2 Trash Pickup
   = Cost will rise $40.00 per year, Service stays the same.

Note: Despite rising costs for labor and operations, this is the first proposed change in DeKalb sanitation fees since 2007.

If you have an opinion and would like to address the Mayor or your City Councilperson beyond what you are capable of in the survey above, here is their email address information:

• Mayor J Max Davis: jmax.davis@brookhaven-ga.us
  
• Rebecca Chase Williams - District 1: rebecca.williams@brookhavenga.gov
• Jim Eyre - District 2: jim.eyre@brookhavenga.gov
• Bates Mattison - District 3: bates.mattison@brookhavenga.gov
• Joe Gebbia - District 4: joe.gebbia@brookhavenga.gov

According to the "Let's Talk Trash" schedule, the last public outreach meeting on Sanitation will be held this weekend.

Saturday, Feb 2, 9 AM
Chapel Hill Middle School
3535 Dogwood Farm Rd
Decatur, GA 30034

At the 1.22.13 City Council Meeting, Mayor J Max Davis brought up Sanitation (Trash, Recycling, and Yard Waste), where Bill Riley explained that the City has pursued an IGA with service levels to remain as they are today. There is a kink in that plan, however. As many of the Brookhaven Citizens may already know, Dekalb County is considering countywide rate increases for Sanitation Services. Bill Riley explains, "I would anticipate that when they [Dekalb County] make a decision on what they are going to do, they will come to the cities and offer either once a week or twice a week for Garbage pickup...whenever they do it, it will go to all the cities at one time...they will present a couple of options and the cities will vett and choose the option and build the IGA around that."