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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us November 10, 2005 Under fire, Jackson County to revisit trash rates Customers outside of Ashland face sharp increases on Dec. 1 By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings The outcry of some Ashland Sanitary Service customers has spurred the Jackson County Board of Commissioners to review new trash collection rates approved by the commission two weeks ago. “I think what pushed the board is a concern about being consistent,” Commissioner C.W. Smith said. “We want to make sure that everyone is being treated fairly.” A dozen residents came to the board’s Wednesday meeting to share their concerns with the commission, which had already decided to review the new surcharges. The rate change affects almost 400 customers who live on private roads in the south Valley. Ashland Sanitary’s franchise agreement with the county permits but does not require an analysis of the rates every winter. At a commission study session on Tuesday, the three-member board directed county staff to investigate the fee change. “You know, it hasn’t been done since the rate was approved years ago,” Smith said. “So, in light of the existing controversy and some of the confusion with existing rate-payers, we’ve directed staff to do a review.” Commissioners expect to hear from county staff by early December. In the meantime, the rate increase will go into effect on Dec. 1. The rise in Ashland Sanitary Service surcharges came after the trash collector announced in September it would no longer drive trucks on roads not maintained by the county. Ashland Sanitary cited several reasons for the change, including rising gas prices and dangerous driveways. Co-owner Russ Chapman also noted that collecting trash at sites located more than 40 yards from the road is beyond the purview of the company’s franchise agreement, which has been around since 1993. In response to customers’ desires for the company to continue picking up trash along their private roads, Ashland Sanitary came up with new rates based on the distance between the trash cans and the public road. Company officials announced the fee change in a letter dated Oct. 17, and county commissioners approved the rates on Oct. 26. “It’s kind of like you come up with a figure in the middle — kind of an average. We just decided to go with a flat rate,” Chapman said. “And we’ve had numerous compliments from people saying that’s what they’ve wanted from the beginning. [They’ve said] ‘We’ll pay what it takes for you to come in.’” But some customers believe it’s too much. They’ve called the new rates “price-gouging” and asked the county commissioners to determine if the rates are competitive with other local trash haulers, such as Rogue Disposal & Recycling in Medford. “You just have to have some sort of rationale for your pricing,” said Susan Taylor, who lives on Highwood Drive, outside of Ashland off Tolman Creek Road. The new Ashland Sanitary fees will add $4.40 a month to trash pick-ups 10 to 40 yards from a public road. Service 40 yards to 1 mile from the public road will add $24 to a monthly bill, and beyond one mile adds $40 a month. Rogue Disposal & Recycling charges a surcharge of $4.35 a month to travel up private roads on top of the $13.70 a month collection fee. Taylor’s home is on a two-lane private road 150 yards from the public road. Her family’s rate would increase from about $15 a month to just over $39, a 160 percent increase. “The whole thing is just untenable,” Taylor said. “You can’t just rip off 300 people.” Ashland Sanitary also informed customers on private roads that the company will not provide service to them where safety concerns or the condition of the road could endanger trash collectors or damage the company’s vehicles. Some customers also worry they’re footing the bill for rural customers whose residences require a lot of driving, such as people along Highway 66 or Dead Indian Memorial Road, but front on a public road. “The guy on Valley View pays the same $15.07 per can as the person on the Greensprings,” Chapman said. “You come up with something in the middle.” The rate change has caused other customers to stop using Ashland Sanitary’s services. Several have told Chapman they will go back to hauling their own trash to the Ashland Transfer Station northeast of town. Staff writer Jennifer Squires can be reached at 482-3456 x 3019 or [email protected]. 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