Medford residents could be seeing fewer donation bins around town in the near future as the township plans to clamp down on regulating them.
After representatives from Goodwill expressed concern about the legitimacy of bins at the March 18 council meeting, council is planning to draft an ordinance similar to the state statute.
Township solicitor Chris Norman said the state statute outlines restrictions for donation bins to be enforced in all municipalities. He also said the township can legally ban the bins outright.
Councilman Frank Czekay said he supports the passage of an ordinance with many of the same regulations as the state.
In addition, Czekay said zoning regulations regarding the bins could be included in changes to the township’s master plan. The planning board is currently discussing revisions to the plan.
“I say we move forward with the ordinance that mirrors the state statute,” Czekay said. “We can also talk about redoing the zoning rules with donation bins so that we can further restrict.”
While the majority of council agreed with restricting the bins, Councilman Randy Pace echoed his statements from March 18 by saying an outright ban on the bins would be best.
“As it stands today, none of the bins in Medford, zero, none of them are compliant,” Pace said.
Specific examples were cited as to why the bins in the township were illegal. Pace said many of the bins reside at gas stations. Donation bins are not permitted at gas stations under state statute.
Czekay proposed an idea to establish a clear set of regulations for the bins. He said the bins would be permitted, but only if they follow the regulations outlined in the proposed ordinance.
“It’s going to be treated like a trash can,” he said. “You’re going to have to screen it and do all the things like you do for a dumpster.”
In addition, Czekay suggested raising the fee for the bins from $25 to $100 to help with enforcement.
Despite the ideas proposed by other council members, Pace said an ordinance and new regulations will do no good if the township doesn’t enforce it.
“You can put an ordinance in place to meet the state requirements, but again, someone has to follow up and stay on top of it,” he said.
Township manager Chris Schultz said two bins were located on township property and the vendor has been sent a letter asking for them to be removed. As for the bins on public property, council agreed to enforce the state statute on non-compliant bins until a township ordinance is passed.
In other news:
• Medford is preparing to make a number of technological upgrades this month. Schultz said a new township website is expected to be launched by the end of the month. The township will also begin to stream its council meetings live, starting in the coming weeks.
• Schultz said the township will save $40,000 on its proposed 2014 budget thanks to changes in projected pension payments to the state. There will not be any amendments to the budget. The extra $40,000 will be treated as excess surplus.
• The next Medford Township council meeting will be on Tuesday, April 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the Public Safety Building. The meeting will also serve as the public hearing for the municipal budget.
