City begins delivery of Garbys

Out with the old, in with the new.

The first “Garby” carts will be dropped off  at 8 a.m. Wednesday in the 100 block of Miller Avenue SW, said Megan Murphy, spokeswoman for the city's Solid Waste and Recycling Division. The carts will be delivered following the city's trash collection schedule. At about 1,000 a day, it will take about eight days just to supply the homes on the Monday collection routes, Murphy said.

It will take until September to deliver all 40,000 Garbys. The city will issue a notice as deliveries to each collection-day neighborhood are completed.

“There's no need to call,” Murphy said. “It will automatically show up curbside.”

Residents may begin to use the new containers as they receive them, Murphy said.

The switch to city-supplied containers is the first step in a plan to cut costs by eliminating the city's two-person collection crews. The Garby is designed to be picked up and dumped by a mechanical truck-mounted arm, allowing a single person to both drive the truck and perform the collection process.

That will allow the department to cut eight to nine positions. Murphy said the reduction will occur by attrition over three to five years as the automated trucks are delivered.

The $1.4 million project is funded through revenue raised through the city's garbage fees billed to each city residence.

At 30 gallons, the Garby – gray with a black lid – are smaller than the 65-gallon green Yardy carts for yard waste. But residents may place up to 100 pounds of trash in their Garby – the limit on conventional cans is 40 pounds.

Drop-off sites are available for residents who want to recycle their old trash cans. City Carton Recycling, 901 Ingleside Dr. SW, has a bin for both plastic and metal garbage cans, and the Cedar Rapids-Linn County Solid Waste Agency accepts metal garbage cans at both locations, 2250 A St. SW in Cedar Rapids and 1954 County Home Rd., Marion.

The agency facilities are open 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m daily except Sunday. City Carton's drop-off is accessible 24 hours.

Residents who change homes should leave their Garbys behind, Murphy said.