Still shot from Amwaste promotional video
An Amwaste truck makes the rounds to pick up garbage.
Amwaste is making changes with some Homewood residents’ garbage collection days to better streamline service, Mayor Patrick McClusky told the Homewood City Council this week.
The changes are the result of customer feedback regarding the time of day that service is provided.
“A lot of people were complaining that their cans weren't getting picked up until later on in the evening,” McClusky said. “Sometimes, they may not go until 7 o'clock and then they'd have to get pushed until the next morning.”
The resolution is to shift some people’s collection days, he said.
“If you honestly looked at the amount of houses they were picking up on that Monday-Thursday route compared to the Tuesday-Friday route, it was too many,” McClusky said. “It was astronomical.”
The mayor said he is one of the people whose pickup day will change.
“We want to be able to have people get their cans picked up early in the morning and then by the time they get home, their cans are completely empty,” McClusky said. “Earlier route completion time is not only more convenient for residents ... but also provides a safer environment for all that are concerned.”
The mayor said residents affected by collection changes will get a yellow mailer that details the changes, as well as a link to an interactive Google map with which residents can confirm their days of garbage service.
“Other municipalities are going through the same thing,” McClusky said. “They're losing their Wednesday-Saturday service in some areas. It's all to make this so that people can be assured that their cans are getting picked up in the morning and they can take their cans back up.”
Garbage is not the only area where city officials are trying to improve customer service. The Homewood City Council also on Monday amended the city’s agreement with Tyler Technologies to provide an online civic access permitting portal and paperless plan review and permitting system.
“We have been looking for that in the city for years to kind of become more efficient internally, but also that our citizens don't get sent all over the place to get what they need,” Deputy Fire Chief Brandon Broadhead said. “There's nothing more frustrating than coming to the fourth floor of City Hall and me telling you [that] you’ve got to go to two [second floor] to get a business license. Then you go to two, and they're not quite open yet, and then you come back to four.
“It's not how we should treat our citizens,” Broadhead said. “This technology should integrate us better so that we can provide a better experience for our customers.”
Finance Committee member Barry Smith said the amended agreement with Tyler Technologies will “take the city’s permitting system into this century.”
In other action Monday, the council:
- Set April 22 as the date for a public hearing to consider an amendment to the final development plan for Samford University to permit the proposed construction of a new three-story addition to the existing North Parking Deck. That would add 550 parking spaces to accommodate the university’s on-campus parking needs.
- Approved a partial rezoning of the former Second Presbyterian Church property, which was subdivided into two lots. The southern lot retains its I-2 (Institutional District) zoning; the northern lot was rezoned to C-1 (Office Building District) for the construction of an 11,000-square-foot, single-story medical office building. Most of the parking will be on the commercial lot.
- Appointed Allison Crawford and Mollie McFarland to at-large positions on the Homewood Arts Council and Natalie Pruitt and Jane Nail to fill the Ward 4 and 5 positions, respectively, on the Arts Council.
- Amended the 2024 budget to allow for the purchase of a traffic department vehicle.
- Set 4:30 p.m. on April 22 as a time to open bids for maintenance for fire facilities.
- Granted a request for a sign variance for a wrap-around storefront sign for Supertone at 2732 Central Ave.
- Set a public hearing for March 25 for a requested sign variance for Goodies Toy Store at 3027 Central Ave.
- Authorized the mayor to sign the contract for the Thunder On The Mountain Fourth of July fireworks show.
- Approved a restaurant retail liquor license for Frothy Monkey at 930 Oxmoor Road, pending approval from the police and fire departments.
