Dive Brief:

• Charlotte, NC apartment owners pleaded with the Charlotte City Council on Monday to keep trash services in place, despite a proposal to eliminate collection services from 103,000 apartments as of July 2017. If the proposal passes, it would shift trash collection costs—which are largely footed by the city—to apartment renters, causing rent prices to increase.
• The elimination of services would allow the city to raise about $4 million and add 50 new officers to the police staff. However if the city doesn't eliminate the trash services, City Manager Ron Carlee proposed two other options: a property tax rate increase of less than 1%, or an increase in annual garbage fees paid by all homeowners.
• Today, council members will hold a budget workshop to discuss the situation.

Dive Insight:

While it is understandable that the city of Charlotte needs to rework its budget to pay for necessities such as an increased police force, it is unfortunate that waste collection is where the city is looking to make sacrifices. Additionally, apartment owners would not receive a property tax reduction to compensate for the added expenses if the proposal passes.

"Please consider the majority of Charlotte’s very low-income residents live in multifamily rental housing. Our burgeoning Latino population is far more likely to live in apartments," said Ken Szymanski of the Greater Charlotte Apartment Association to the Charlotte Observer.

This issue is not unique to Charlotte, as battles over the costs of trash collection are being fought across the country. Earlier this year in Oakland, CA, residents protested a similar increase on garbage rates, which boosted bills by 262% for some residents. Yet, trash collection is an undeniable necessity that somebody will need to pay for—and in Charlotte, some apartment renters may need to bite the bullet.