FY27 Proposed Budget

Recent Accomplishments: • Hosted the May 2025 Public Works Open House at the Landfill; almost 200 people attended. • Completed construction of the new Landfill Equipment Building. • Hosted the 2025 Recycling and Solid Waste Management Conference in Coralville; over 60 vendors and 260 solid waste and recycling professionals from across the Midwest attended. • Purchased compost windrow turner to expedite composting process. The purchase was supported by grant funds from the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. • Iowa City Community Compost continues to be a steady-selling commodity. • The Landfill completed a decade-long remedy for groundwater quality and will consequently be able to reduce future groundwater testing costs. • Ongoing issues with a rain flap and tie-in to a future landfill cell have been resolved, making daily operations and long-term planning simpler, and reducing staff stress and frustration. (The budget amendment request for Tire Derived Aggregate is part of this solution.) • Staff continues to build partnerships to promote and support waste reduction and reuse throughout the community. Examples include “Love Food, Fight Waste” with Table to Table, Donation Drive Through with multiple area non-profits, and Repair Fair. • Reduced Saturday hours that match other area landfills seem to have reduced the number of customers coming from other service areas and the associated staff and customer frustration. • A weekend variable-hour site attendant at East Side Recycling Center has allowed for the facility to be rented for additional weekend events and helps keep the site tidier. • Several staff have completed service terms on State-level Boards of Directors. • Curbside staff continues to plan for a fifth trash route; currently partial-day routes are meeting needs as planned. Other potential changes such as route revisions are being explored. • Yard waste fees for all Landfill customers and stickers for curbside bundles and bags have equitably increased revenue.

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