Update: June 27 1:45 p.m.
The Sicamous recycling depot will not be relocating as planned.
According to the Columbia Shuswap Regional District, the move has been put on hold to allow Sicamous council time to discuss the move at an upcoming meeting.
The move would have seen the recycling bins move from behind the Parkland Shopping Centre to the current Sicamous bottle depot location; it had been planned for July 2.
The contract for the CSRD’s recycling depot service expires on June 30; after that date the depot behind the Parkland Shopping Centre will be closed. Sicamous residents will still be able to drop off recyclables at the depot located at Sicamous’ landfill.
“A downtown location for the recycling of accepted materials will not be available after the end of June. It is not known when a downtown recycling depot will re-open or at what location,” a Thursday, June 27 press release from the CSRD reads.
According to the release, CSRD staff had been under the impression that Sicamous was in support of the relocation of the recycling depot. It states the plan has been postponed out of respect for the councillors’ concerns.
Original Story:
Although the District of Sicamous would have liked more time to talk it over, the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) board has decided to move the location of the district’s recycling depot.
The depot, which had been located behind the Parkland Shopping Centre, will be relocating to Sicamous’ bottle depot at 322 Finlayson Street.
The move will give Sicamous residents a one-stop solution for disposing of both empty bottles and cans and their other household recycling.
As the move was being discussed at the CSRD’s June 20 meeting, Sicamous Mayor Terry Rysz, who sits on the board, requested the move be tabled until it could first be discussed by Sicamous council.
The CSRD board approved the move based on the fact that their current agreement with the recycling depot’s caretaker ends before the next CSRD board meeting.
Rysz said he accepts the board’s decision, which they made in support of a staff recommendation, but will be bringing it before Sicamous’ committee of the whole meeting for discussion on June 26 to make sure the council is up to speed and comfortable with the changes.
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Rysz said the bottle depot had been considered as a new location for the recycling bins in the past, but it was ruled out because it also served as the community’s Greyhound bus stop, making it too busy to provide another service. When Greyhound first moved their stop to the Sicamous Visitor’s Centre and then ceased operation all together in late 2018, relocating the recycling bins was back on the table.
The possibility of a new location for the recycling bins was raised in a February committee of the whole meeting. Rysz said it was considered an option so long as two conditions were met: That there be no cost to the district and that the owner of its current location and the caretaker of the bins be made aware of the move. He said CSRD staff have been in contact with Parkland’s owner regarding the move.
“We have some concerns but at the same time we want to work with the regional district and waste management to move this forward,” Rysz said
He added while he sees the advantages of moving the recycling bins to the bottle depot, there has been resistance to the plan from local residents in the past. He noted Finlayson Street can be very busy in the summer with the boat launch and some businesses; the recycling depot could make it even busier.
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According to the CSRD, the change will also mean increased hours for residents to be able to recycle. The depot behind the shopping centre is open 24 hours per week but once the move is complete the bins will be open for the bottle depot’s full 36 hours of operation.
The move is expected to be in effect by July 2.
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