The effects of inflation are far reaching and will soon result in an increase in utility costs for Roosevelt City residents and businesses. K&K Sanitation approached Roosevelt City this fall with a request to increase the fee for garbage collection services.
In the request given to Roosevelt City, K&K Sanitation stated that with recent challenges due to inflation they are seeking financial relief with a proposed 20 percent increase on both residential and commercial accounts. This would increase the $17.50 dollar monthly fee for the first can to $21 dollars and the $10 dollar monthly fee for additional cans to $12 dollars.
The Roosevelt City Council discussed the request during several meetings and on Tuesday, November 15th, held a public hearing on a ‘Proposed Garbage Collection Fee Increase’. Several community members attended and made comments, emphasizing the soaring cost of diesel fuel making this an extraordinary circumstance and stated their support of K&K as a quality provider. Two comments were read that were not in support of an increase. Overall it was noted that there had not been a negative outcry and the overall attendance at the public hearing seemed to support that.
The Council explored options and City administration also noted the need to consider staff time spent administering accounts and related issues. After a lengthy discussion, a motion was made to cancel the contract and negotiate a new contract with K&K without sending out a Request For Proposal (RFP).
An alternative motion was made to cancel the contract and send out a Request For Proposal. The alternative motion went to a vote and failed. The original motion went to a vote and was passed. This means Roosevelt City will be negotiating a new contract with K&K Sanitation for garbage collection services in response to K&K’s request for a 20 percent increase on service fees.
