Superior staff propose utility-bill charge for hazardous-waste costs
The proposal, along with reduced sustainability allocations and a possible multifamily composting policy, still requires further action.
Superior staff are proposing to fund hazardous-waste facility costs through a separate utility-bill line expected to cost less than $2 per month, while allocating $75,000 for building decarbonization and $50,000 for turf conversion. A proposed sustainability position was removed from the current budget plan.
The proposals were discussed Aug. 13 by the Advisory Committee for Environmental Sustainability, or ACES. Staff’s budget update indicated that hazardous-waste costs had been shifted out of the sustainability operating budget. Staff said the charge would be based on the town’s usage, but the available record does not establish the final billing formula, effective date or exact amount.
Staff described the building-decarbonization allocation as a reduction from a larger request, though the discussion cited different figures for the original request. The turf-conversion allocation was described as a reduction to $50,000 from an additional $100,000 request. Staff attributed the removal of the sustainability position to a budget with few new positions and relatively flat sales-tax revenue. These were staff explanations, not findings from a formal ACES vote.
Superior’s Town Council is expected to continue budget discussions before a final vote in October 2026. The ACES meeting agenda listed the budget discussion among staff updates and did not document adoption of the utility charge, allocations or position change. As of Aug. 15, the available record showed none of those proposals as Council-approved.
The meeting also included an assessment of waste systems at three multifamily communities: Bell Flatirons, Origin and the Foxley by Alta, which is under construction. All three had or planned trash and recycling service, but none offered composting at the time of the assessment. The Foxley’s planned system included trash and recycling chutes and compactors but no reserved space or infrastructure for composting.
Consultants found confusing or inconsistent signs and container layouts, contamination and difficult access to some recycling dumpsters. At Bell Flatirons, they said some residents were nearly a quarter-mile from the nearest recycling dumpster. Of 31 survey respondents from Bell Flatirons and Origin, 81% said they were interested in some form of composting; the consultants cautioned that the response was not representative of all residents.
The consultants recommended improving recycling education, signage and system clarity before requiring organics collection. Possible later steps included standardized guidance, mapping each property’s waste system, hauler-provided education and signage requirements, and a proximity standard intended to make recycling and composting at least as convenient as trash.
They also discussed shared compost drop-offs, including a possible arrangement serving Origin and the Foxley. The town could convene property owners, help explore ownership and grant applications, and support the discussion. The meeting did not establish a town-funded drop-off program or approved agreement.
A possible Town Code change would require organics service or reserved space for it in new multifamily developments. That remains a policy option, not an adopted requirement. The town’s waste-services information says service levels for non-contract multifamily neighborhoods are not dictated by the town. Its curbside-composting guidance says Superior planned to engage residents in 2026 about expanding recycling and compost requirements at apartment complexes.