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Washington Evening Journal
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Washington, IA 52353
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Fairfield will not re-open compost site
City had planned to turn site over to private company
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
FAIRFIELD – The city of Fairfield’s plan to re-open the compost site on South 20th Street has fallen through.
Earlier this spring, the city intended to enter into an agreement with a private developer to run the site, which has been closed since last August after it was being abused. However, that plan did not come to fruition because the owner of the land, Grow Fairfield (FEDA), wishes to develop it.
Grow Fairfield owns 10 acres at the southern edge of South 20th Street, and had been leasing a portion of it to the city to use as a compost site for $1 per year. Grow Fairfield Executive Director Ed Malloy told The Union Wednesday that his organization has subdivided that land into three parcels, and that it is pursuing prospective buyers.
“Grow Fairfield was happy to partner with the city and allow for city brush composting for many years,” Malloy said. “We have changed our focus and subdivided that area into new lots that we plan to market for commercial purposes as demand for land has increased.”
Fairfield City Administrator Doug Reinert confirmed that the city is cleaning up the site since it will no longer be used for brush drop-off.
Austin Wilkinson, owner of Scar Grinding LLC, pitched the idea of taking over the compost site to the Fairfield City Council in December 2024. At the time, Wilkinson said that he would be willing to run the compost site for $34,200 per year.
The council had already passed an ordinance to add $0.80 to residents’ water bills for a “compost service fee” before learning of Grow Fairfield’s plan to develop the land. The council is now in the process of rescinding the compost service fee.
ALTERNATIVES TO COMPOST SITE
Reinert said the city is still looking for a long-term solution for a brush drop-off site, but there are alternative means of dropping off brush and acquiring mulch. There is a free mulch pile south of Hy-Vee. Reinert wants residents to know this is not a brush drop-off location, and is only for picking up mulch.
Residents can drop off brush at the city’s maintenance shed at 1002 W. Jefferson Ave. on select dates, though these require a ticket that can be purchased at city hall. The price of a full pick-up load is $25, defined as an area 4 feet by 4 feet by 8 feet. The cost of half a pick-up load is $12.50. The next dates to do this are 1-3 p.m. July 18 and 8:30-11:30 a.m. July 19. Those same times are repeated on the first and third weekends of the month through October.
The city is also endeavoring to hold more frequent brush pickup days, where city staff will pick up brush for free that’s placed in a neat pile in the right-of-way. The last one was July 7, and the next one will be Sept. 8.
Lastly, residents can also place their yard waste into yard waste bags to be picked up by Waste Management on their trash days, and these bags require a sticker that can be purchased at city hall.
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
