The Township of Harrington will soon have a new vehicle trucking away trash and recyclables from homes and businesses.
Back in December, council approved the purchase of a new garbage truck for the municipality at a cost of approximately $280,000. Council’s approval included allowing the township to apply for a loan to cover the cost of the new truck.
The existing truck is a decade old and reaching the end of its service life.
“We think it’s a good opportunity after 10 years to be going for a new truck,” said Mayor Jacques Parent.
Harrington only has one garbage truck and the mayor said replacing it now is a good thing to do before it starts having mechanical problems because they have no other trucks to use as back-up.
Parent said the entire township budget for 2019 is $4,082,652, and that includes grants it receives from other levels of government, so council decided to give residents the opportunity to decide if the garbage truck purchase should go ahead.
Under Québec municipal law, a referendum on a municipal council decision can take place if enough signatures are registered. Harrington offered that option to its residents on the garbage truck decision, but no residents signed the register for a referendum.
Without the referendum, the decision council made to approve purchasing the truck and applying for the loan remains in effect.
“We’re going out for bids,” Parent explained as the next step in the purchase process.
The new garbage truck will serve Harrington’s waste and recycling pickup needs for 10 to 15 years.
