COUNCIL ACTION FORM

OPT-OUT ELIGIBILITY FOR ALLEY-ADJACENT CURBSIDE RECYCLING CUSTOMERS

At its August 25, 2026, meeting, the City Council was presented with a Council Action Form (see attached) regarding alternatives for residential curbside recycling collection in alleys. The Council directed staff to continue with recycling services as-is and to prepare modifications to the recycling program ordinance allowing alley-adjacent customers to opt-out of paying the mandatory monthly fee in limited circumstances. The opt-out eligibility criteria discussed at the August 25 meeting were (all five must be met to be eligible):

1. The property must abut an alley,
   
   
2. The property must not have a driveway access that goes to a street frontage,
   
   
3. The property must receive garbage collection (if any) in the alley,
   
   
4. The property must have a physical impediment that does not allow access from the alley of the property to the front of the property (e.g., a fence with no gate, landscaping with no pathway, zero lot line building, etc.). The absence of a paved or establish path does not meet this criteria (a cart can be moved through a grass side yard), and 
   
   
5. The nearest property line must be more than 60 feet from the curb line of the nearest street frontage, measured along the alley (this is approximately the median distance from the garage door to the curb of a random sample of Ames residential properties).  

In the time since the August 25 meeting, staff has closely evaluated each of the 913 properties that are in alley-adjacent blocks. Staff used aerial and street-level photography and conducted in-person investigations where necessary to better understand the potential impacts and to be prepared for questions from individual property owners.

Based on the five criteria originally discussed on August 25, only three of the 913 affected properties would be eligible to opt-out. Because the criteria would result in so few properties being eligible, staff is recommending that the City Council consider modifying the criteria before the draft ordinance is prepared to provide additional latitude for customers whose properties present challenges to curbside service.

Staff is now recommending modified criteria to be eligible to opt-out of the curbside recycling program and its associated fee:

1. The property must abut an alley,
   
   
2. The property must not have a primary driveway access that goes to a street frontage ("primary" means the only driveway if only one driveway exists, or the driveway connecting to the garage if more than one exists), and
   
   
3. The property must not be receiving recycling collection service in an alley.  

Removing items 3 through 5 from the original criteria would eliminate concerns regarding how physical impediments are interpreted (such as slopes or landscaping materials), whether access paths currently exist, and whether those paths would need to be created and maintained during the winter. There are a handful of affected properties that have driveways both on the street-side and the alley-side. Adding the concept of a primary driveway (one that leads to a garage or generally serves as the location where vehicles are parked) allows each property to be evaluated based on how it is currently utilized rather than on access scenarios that may not reflect the practical use of the property.

The addition of clarifying that the property must not be receiving recycling collection service in an alley is intended for those alley customers where Aspen has agreed to collect recycling in the alley with their Automated Side Loading equipment. Those properties would not be eligible to opt-out of the monthly fee.  

The elimination of the garbage collection, physical impediment, and distance requirements would expand the number of properties that could qualify for the opt-out from 3 to as many as 333 of the 913 properties. This more closely aligns with the proportion of properties that staff had originally envisioned would be eligible for opt-out.

Additionally, prior to the August 25 meeting, staff and/or City Council had received communication from 27 alley-adjacent properties expressing concern about the recycling pickup location. Under the modified criteria shown above, 24 of those 27 properties would have the opportunity to opt out if they so desired.

1. Direct staff to prepare a draft ordinance allowing recycling opt-out if the property: a) abuts an alley, b) does not have a primary driveway access that goes to a street frontage, and 3) is not receiving recycling collection service in the alley (estimated 333 opt-out eligible properties). Once prepared, staff may request completing the readings of the ordinance in an expedited fashion to avoid further delay in offering the opt-out options.
   
   
2. Direct staff to prepare a draft ordinance allowing recycling opt-out based on the five criteria discussed August 25 (estimated 3 opt-out eligible properties).
   
   
3. Direct staff to prepare a draft ordinance using another combination of eligibility criteria as identified by City Council.
   
   
4. Refer this item back to staff for further information.

After completing a detailed property-by-property review, the original criteria suggested by staff in August to allow for alley-adjacent customers to opt-out of the recycling program and fee in certain circumstances resulted in very few properties being eligible to opt-out. Staff believes a modified set of criteria more closely meets the intent of the City Council to provide relief from paying the fee in circumstances where participation in the curbside program is truly impractical. The revised criteria allows for an opt-out for the majority of alley-adjacent customers who have contacted the City with concerns about the pickup location. Directing staff to modify the language will allow staff to bring back a revised ordinance for consideration at a future date. Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council adopt Alternative No. 1 as described above.