As the business and population of the city center increased, so did the trash. Bibb County is changing their trash removal program so everyone can enjoy the area.
Macon, Georgia — Many agree that downtown Macon is growing. It has new restaurants and hotels, street extensions and many new shops.
If it continues to grow, Bibb County wants to make sure no trails of trash are left after all the progress.
“Every time I come back here, I see more businesses and the store fronts are getting fuller,” said John Thornberry, a former downtown resident.
During his time living downtown, he said he has seen the area go through its highs and lows. Now, it’s at an all-time high.
“Overall cleanliness is pretty good. It’s been going up and I see it coming,” he said.
To keep everyone clean, safe and happy, Bibb County wants to manage trash properly.
As of now, Macon-Bibb is responsible for all commercial waste collection in the downtown area, but they believe their waste collection may not keep up with the growth of the downtown area.
So they are considering stricter rules on waste collection, such as making each business contract with its own waste collection company and letting them have their own bins.
The proposal also says businesses could be fined $100 per day for litter exceeding two cubic yards after a warning is issued. This is considered a public nuisance.
Not every business is convinced this is the best way to keep the area clean.
“That would be an additional cost,” Wayne Woodard said.
“I think a city that takes that load actually makes the city run more smoothly,” Tony Martin said.
Martin has been doing business in downtown Macon for years. He went from running and promoting the club to co-owning Global Soles on Poplar Street.
Because of the growth, now is a prime time to own a business in the area, he said.
“It’s cleaner now than ever and there’s an influx of business, and I feel like they go hand in hand,” he said.
Martin said he didn’t know where their business could store their bins, which would add to their plate.
“Sometimes we even charge for parking, so now to add crap on top of that, you have staff, you have inventory, everything else has to worry about it. It shouldn’t be one thing we should be adding to our plate,” he said Say.
Wayne Woodard said he has to worry about 2 businesses. He is the owner of Ambitious Graphics and Imagine 584.
“It didn’t make me want to open more businesses downtown because I could go elsewhere and not worry about it,” he said.
That probably won’t help them prevent the spread of litter, Woodard added.
“I feel like it’s going to end up on the street or somewhere random,” he said.
No changes will be made until early 2023. The Macon-Biebb committee will discuss their proposed plan at a meeting Tuesday.