Downtown Jackson recycling site moves to Goodwill

News from the Jackson Citizen Patriot:

The Community Recycling Center will reopen today at its new home at Goodwill Industries, 617 N. Mechanic St.

The center, which is operated by Northwest Refuse and Modern Waste Systems, has been in a parking lot at 209 W. Louis Glick Highway since it opened in 2005. It ceased operations there Monday.

Goodwill Operations Manager Matthew Brown said the store already recycles clothes and computers at its retail location, so the center is a natural extension.

"We're hoping it will boost our donations," Brown said.

The Louis Glick Highway location was chosen because it was convenient for residents on their way to and from downtown. Jackson City Councilman Andrew Frounfelker, whose ward is downtown, said some residents used the site to dump nonrecyclable items despite the presence of signs forbidding the act.

"Having Goodwill manage the city's recycling efforts will remove that expense for city taxpayers," Frounfelker wrote in an e-mail. "Overall the move to Goodwill, I believe, will be a positive endeavor for Goodwill, the city and, most important, the citizens of the community who participate in recycling."

The center will continue to accept common household recyclables. While it has been open 24 hours and unstaffed, it will henceforth be open and staffed from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Goodwill will celebrate the move at noon Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, lunch, refreshments and tours of its facilities.

For more information about the center, call Brown at 787-0570, ext. 20.

Hopefully this will help clean up some of the problems the Louis Glick Hwy. drop-off site saw over its years of operation.