Mounds View is finishing a nearly $25 million project to replace and renovate 26 miles of streets and underground utilities, and the city would like the road surfaces to last.
But a cautious attempt to get public buy-in on a scheme to cut down on the number of heavy garbage trucks pounding those streets has run into trouble, after a city-sponsored telephone survey and comments solicited from citizens.
"We probably heard from more than 500 residents," City Administrator Jim Ericson said. "And the overwhelming response was, they didn't support a change for a variety of reasons. Some don't want to lose their current hauler. Some don't want to lose the ability to dump their current hauler.
"I think what will happen next is that the City Council will discontinue work on pursuing organized collection."
Many city officials in the area share similar concerns about the effect of the trucks on their streets. But it's typically an emotional issue, and Mounds View isn't alone in backing off: Roseville and Fridley are recent examples, though Bloomington and St. Anthony have made the switch.
Some of the movement on the issue in recent years was prompted by a 2009 state study warning that a single garbage truck's impact on streets is the equivalent of 857 to 1,429 cars or more.
David Peterson
Minneapolis
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