Lockport Approves Waste Management's At Your Door Service

LOCKPORT, IL — Lockport residents will now receive the At Your Door service from Waste Management after the city council approved an amendment to its contract with the business at its Wednesday meeting.

City Administrator Ben Benson said the service can start as early as June, and will cost an extra $1.42 a month.

At Your Door is a special collections service, where hazardous or hard-to-recycle items are picked up from your home, according to the Waste Management website. These items can include household chemicals, consumer electronics, paint, automotive products, batteries, garden chemicals, fluorescent light bulbs, flammable items, swimming pool chemicals, and syringes or lancets.

Lemont and Romeoville utilize the service, and Benson said Romeoville provided data which showed the program disposed of 100,000 pounds of hazardous waste and electronics in its first year, of which 98 percent was recyclable. Romeoville had a 15 percent participation rate in the service.

"It's all-in or all-out," Benson said. "This would affect every account in Lockport."

The city conducted a survey online to gain input from residents about the service, and 594 residents responded, according to council documents. About 65 percent of respondents said they were very likely to use the service, and 41 percent of respondents indicated they were willing to pay up to $1 per month for the service.

Alderman J.R. Gillogly voted against the amendment, and said the program cost too much for the amount of people who would use it.

"I think it's a good idea, I think it's a good part-time service," Gillogly said. "I think it needs to be charged as a part-time service, so I think Lockport should say 'no,' until Waste Management figures out a way to make this not an all-in project."

Alderwoman Catherine Perretta, who also voted against the amendment, said she has used other services when she needs to recycle items Waste Management won't take.

Alderwoman Joanne Bartelsen said she wished the program was on an as-needed basis.

"To have it where everyone has to pay into it, I don't know that I can back that up," she said. She also voted 'no' on the amendment.

Lockport entered into a 7-year contract extension with Waste Management in 2017, council documents state. After an 18-month introductory rate, the $1.42 charge would be subject to the additional 2.5 percent annual increase, which is the annual increase for the rest of the garbage rate.

The At Your Door program can be reconsidered annually, according to council documents.

The council approved the amendment in a 5-3 vote.