St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter is warning residents could go without garbage service in just a few days.
St. Paul's new primary garbage hauler FCC Environmental is set to take over on April 1, but the St. Paul City Council has voted to block the company from moving into its new truck yard.
It's located along Randolph Avenue, several blocks east from West Seventh Street. City Council President President Rebecca Noecker says the decision comes after concerns were raised from neighborhood groups.
"I've been hearing from constituents for months now about their concerns about this particular site for garbage hauling both from an environmental perspective, a pedestrian safety perspective," Noecker explains.
Noecker says the company already has a back-up plan and the decision won't impact the start to service.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said in a statement that the council granted the current appeal without a legal basis. Without an operations site to maintain their trash trucks and coordinate dispatching, it isn't clear how FCC Environmental would service the city. Carter did say he isn't ruling out declaring a state of emergency.
But Noecker says the company's poor planning is not the city's responsibility.
"They also have a site plan that has yet to be approved," she said. "They have state permits that have yet to be approved. You know, the notion that they were going to have all of that done somehow, plus all of their construction done by April 1, is just ridiculous. You know, I received assurances that they have plans for a temporary refueling site to use in the meantime."
The move from the council was met with backlash from Carter who is now urging council members to reconsider their vote.