Beacon Falls exploring ways to open transfer station

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BEACON FALLS — First Select Gerard Smith is looking for cheaper ways to make the transfer station available to residents.

However, every time the transfer station opens to allow residents to drop off their trash, it costs the town $5,000.

During the Board of Selectmen meeting last month, Smith laid out the possibility of charging $25 a truck load to help offset the cost of the transfer station.

The idea was met with complaints from the audience, who felt that there would be a lot of protest over the cost.

In the days following the meeting, Smith explained there were no immediate plans to charge residents to bring their trash to the transfer station.

He explained that he is trying to figure out alternatives to bring the costs down.

One alternative Smith said he is looking into is providing a curbside pickup for large items twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall.

During the Selectmen meeting he explained the only reason the transfer station was able to open in May and June was due to the mild winter, which led to the town having money leftover from the road salt it didn’t purchase.

If nothing is changed about the transfer station, residents can expect it to be open fewer times in the future.

“This budget only had six [days to be open], so that means next year you will only have July, August, and September. It’s not going to be open in October or November,” Smith said.