Two firms selected to privatize Detroit trash collection. By J.
Cooper 18 November 2013 On November 13, the City of Detroit announced that Rizzo Environmental Services of Sterling Heights, Michigan and Advanced Disposal, Inc. of Ponte Vedra, Florida were the successful bidders for privatizing Detroit’s solid waste hauling. Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr’s office will finalize contracts with the two firms within the next thirty days. They are tentatively expected to begin handling trash pickup and curbside recycling May 1, 2014.
The awarded contracts cover only collection and hauling but not disposal. Bill Nowling, Orr’s spokesman, said the anticipated savings of the privatization to Rizzo and Advanced Disposal should total $6 million annually through a five-year contract, considerably lower than originally projected. Approximately 125 workers, currently members of Teamsters local 214, will lose their jobs and be forced to apply to the new companies for work. The effect on Detroit residents is also yet to be seen. Hardest Hit Fund/Demolition - Building Detroit. In February 2010 the U.S.
Department of Treasury created the Hardest Hit Fund to provide assistance to homeowners in 18 states that were most affected by the mortgage foreclosure crisis. The U.S. Treasury allows cities like Detroit to use this money for residential demolition. The Detroit Land Bank has been awarded funding under this program. This is a one-time opportunity to make a major dent in Detroit’s blight problem.
Under the federal program, these funds come with a restriction: Public Lighting Authority. Detroit’s street lighting system has been in increasingly serious disrepair for some time, with minimal infrastructure investment having been made for at least the last 20 years.
When the Public Lighting Authority was created, roughly 40 percent of the street lights were not working for reasons that included copper theft, bulb outages, vandalism, obsolete technology, lack of repair staff and a lack of funds to pay for repairs. Unable to pay bill, Mich. city turns off lights - US news - Life. HIGHLAND PARK, Mich. — As the sun dips below the rooftops each evening, parts of this Detroit enclave turn to pitch black, the only illumination coming from a few streetlights at the end of the block or from glowing yellow yard globes.
It wasn't always this way. But when the debt-ridden community could no longer afford its monthly electric bill, elected officials not only turned off 1,000 streetlights. They had them ripped out — bulbs, poles and all. Threatened Cuts From Mayor: Police, Fire & People Mover. DETROIT (WWJ) – One week after the Detroit City Council voted 8-1 to cut an additional $50 million beyond Mayor Bing’s budget recommendation, new details are emerging Monday regarding the additional cuts to the city budget.
An advisory sent to WWJ stated the city departments, which have the responsibility of managing their budgets, have analyzed the cuts and the staffing and service reductions that will result. A detailed summary of three high-priority areas that will be affected by the $50 million cut are listed below: Public Safety (Police and Fire) Parks, Recreation and Grass Cutting (General Services and Recreation) Transportation (DDOT, People Mover and Woodward Light Rail) Fire Proposed Fire Cuts: $4,100,000 Reduction in Fire personnel Potential Closure of Fire Stations Reduced vehicle availability for Emergency and Fire Response Diminishes fire safety efforts “These cuts won’t solve our fiscal crisis.
Detroit Rising: Life after bankruptcy. One year after a federal judge approves Detroit's bankruptcy exit plan, progress has been made while looming challenges remain, especially city pensions The City of Detroit has more than enough cash to pay its daily bills.
Thousands of busted streetlights have been replaced. City retirees still receive pension checks, and valuable paintings remain ensconced in the gilded halls of the Detroit Institute of Arts. That's the good news. But a year after a federal judge approved a cost-cutting and reinvestment plan in the nation's largest-ever municipal bankruptcy case, Detroit's financial future still hangs in the balance.
Among the greatest concerns: a multibillion-dollar pension bill that starts coming due in less than a decade. The city is on the hook to make a balloon pension payment estimated at more than $100 million in 2024 alone. So far, the early returns for the investments since the bankruptcy are falling short. It was officially known as a plan of adjustment. None came true. View City of Detroit Reports. DetroitFactSheet 412909 7. Everything You Need To Know About Detroit’s Bankruptcy Settlement. 9 ways Detroit is changing after bankruptcy. When Detroit filed for bankruptcy last July, observers around the world were shocked by how far some city services had deteriorated -- though it was no secret to residents.
Average police response times clocked in at almost an hour. Tens of thousands of broken streetlights meant entire streets go dark at nightfall. Detroit's gentrification won't give poor citizens reliable public services. For the past two years, I have taken postgraduate students in urban geography to Detroit, where a prosperous downtown is rising.
The city’s transformation is being celebrated and seen as potential model for other places. But George Galster, professor of urban studies at Detroit’s Wayne State University told my students to imagine the city as a bathtub.