Can a city save money selling trash bags?

Can the city of Red Wing help relieve budget pressure by selling trash bags?

That's one of the ideas residents have offered -- on the public library's white board, on the city website and by phone -- when the city asked how it could save money. The phone survey is still going on and will feed information into budget hearings at the end of the month, but at least a few interesting threads have emerged so far.

Like cities across Minnesota, Red Wing is bracing for continued squeezing as it prepares its budget and property tax levy for 2011, and it is asking residents for help.

A couple of responses from the Red Wing's web survey compiled August 5 suggest ways to reward those who those who throw less away.

Here's one that seems simplest:

One very successful method of reducing cost for consumers is to sell Red Wing Trash bags. The trash service only collect city purchased bags, low trash producing consumers benefit by paying less for trash pickup and high trash producers have a choice of either pay more or produce less.

Another several commenters--or perhaps a few really passionate ones who commented several times--asked that fire and police work more efficiently. Here's one idea:

My suggestion to reduce costs would be to eliminate Red Wing's paid-on-call firefighters and, in their place, to expand the automatic-aid agreement the Red Wing Fire Department currently has with the Ellsworth Fire Department to include all structure fires in the city of Red Wing.

And later in the same response:

The cost of training, equipment, recruitment and retirement incentives for Red Wing's paid-on-call firefighters could be better used elsewhere, as Red Wing's complement of full-time, on-duty firefighter/paramedics currently handle over 99% of emergency calls, such as medical emergencies, motor vehicle accidents, hazardous conditions, rescues and non-structural fires...

Out of the 62 responses logged so far, there were a few shout-outs to the city's newsletter, Red Wing's Current

which will shift from print to online next month.

In all, the ideas offered online ran a gamut from seeking more volunteer help in providing city services to raising taxes.

City officials are planning two public meetings later this month to discuss residents' ideas.

Even if no workable ideas result, Red Wing's approach is at least a way to spread awareness of the situation community leaders are finding themselves in these days.

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