Kalona City Council met on April 2. Photo by Sam McIntosh.

Kalona residents will see a change in waste management this summer.

The Kalona City Council approved to move forward with crafting a five-year contract with Johnson County Refuse that will give Kalona residents a cart each for garbage and recycling. Each residence will receive at no charge a 65-gallon cart for recycling for a weekly pick up, and for garbage residents will have the option to receive a 65-gallon or 35-gallon cart at no charge for a weekly pick up. The monthly cost for both 65-gallon garbage and recycling carts will be $16.50, or $15 for a 35-gallon cart and a 65-gallon cart. The current cost for recycling is $6 per month, and $1.25 for garbage stickers.

City Administrator Ryan Schlabaugh explains why the city is making this change, “You know the biggest thing is it’s going to allow us to be able to provide the residents with potentially a better container than what they currently have. It has a little more capacity, kind of the inconvenience with the stickers, being able to have to go out and purchase those when you need them, we’ve heard some complaints on those. The other thing is it’s going to allow for our haulers to be able to provide a little bit better service to us. They do a great job now but it’s getting harder and harder to staff that equipment with the stress of what they do, physically.”

North Liberty, Solon, and Tiffin are all in the process of adopting this new system, in which a truck will automatically pick up the issued containers itself. The city will send a letter to residents outlining the program and container options, with it going into effect by July 1.