Black Mountain announces waste removal service, renaming of greenway
BLACK MOUNTAIN - Black Mountain will have a new solid waste removal system, the town’s Board of Aldermen announced Aug. 10.
Added with its solid waste ordinance, the board declined a $20,000 offer to purchase town property on Flat Creek Road and East Street.
The board later voted in favor of renaming Riverwalk Greenway in honor of former alderman Carlos Showers, who died Jan. 27.
“I think his character was beyond reproach,” said former mayor Don Collins. “Nobody was more accessible than what Carlos was.”
Collins added additional compliments to Showers’ tenure on the board and his contributions to the town.
“Perhaps the gesture of the greenway is not large enough,” Ryan Stone said.
Stone offered the future possibility of renaming Vance Avenue, which now features a portion of the Riverwalk Greenway, or a future public service building in honor of Showers.
Riverwalk Greenway currently extends from Highway 70 to the In the Oaks trail by Vance Avenue. Collins initially suggested the portion be renamed after Showers.
Showers was first elected to the board in 2009. He held a seat until 2017 before later being appointed to fill Collins' seat after Collins was elected mayor.
The new trash ordinance outlines new guidelines for the removal of waste, including the prohibition of solid waste, including littering, with the exception of landfilling.
Collins said that Black Mountain was the last municipality in Buncombe County to not have a waste removal service available. The town had previously announced it was not renewing its contract with Waste Pro and would be taking over sanitation services.
A back-door service will be provided to those who are physically disabled, the ordinance states, including weekly garbage and biweekly recycling pickups.
These scheduled garbage and recycling pickups are now provided throughout the town in a curbside collection, with the removal of yard waste and bulk items available weekly by request only.
Residential trash collection will be limited to six bags per week. This limitation is based on the town’s weekly average, the board said.
The town will limit the collection of bulk items to once per month, with additional items adding a $25 fee per item.