Anoka will need residents’ approval before enacting city-run garbage collection program

Voters in Anoka overwhelmingly said they would have to give their approval before the north metro city can institute organized trash collection.

Nearly 75% of voters who cast ballots in Tuesday’s primary said “yes” when asked if the city needs to get residents’ permission to replace a system in which customers select their trash hauler with one the city would assign.

Just over 25% of voters said “no,” according to results posted on the Minnesota Secretary of State’s election results webpage.

With the vote, the city’s charter will be amended to include the following language: “Unless first approved by a majority of voters in a state general election, the city shall not replace the competitive market in solid waste collection with a system in which solid waste services are provided by government-chosen collectors in government-designated districts.”

The question appeared on the ballot after a citizens group turned in a petition to force a vote.

After Tuesday’s result, voters will now have the power in November to decide if Anoka has the authority to implement a city-run garbage collection program or continue to allow customers to choose their hauler.

The Anoka City Council has already placed a question on the Nov. 5 ballot asking citizens if they would like organized trash collection. Anoka has had organized collection for recycling for decades, “so we decided to let the citizens decide which system they preferred and then would honor those wishes with either a fully open system or organized system,” said Council Member Erik Skogquist.

In June, the city formed a committee to study the matter, but four haulers currently licensed to pick up solid waste in the city sued after they were told to submit contract proposals. The committee’s report is expected to be discussed at the Aug. 19 City Council meeting.