Ann Arbor to Reimburse ReCommunity for Baler as Recycling Fight Continues

The money is coming from the city's solid waste fund cash reserves.

The resolution that went before council Monday night indicated the total cost of the new baler was $542,835, which is $39,700 less than the figure cited in July. City officials weren't immediately available to explain the difference.

Marti Praschan, a financial manager for the city, wrote in a memo to council that because of the short time between the purchase of the new baler and the termination of the operating contract with ReCommunity in July, the city needed to cover the full amount of the balance of the purchase price.

And because the city issued the termination notice on July 7 shortly before the council voted on the $116,507 that same night, there wasn't time to make changes to the resolution that night, Praschan wrote, though the emergency authorization attached to the agenda item included notice from ReCommunity that it expected the city to cover the balance of the purchase price on a pro rata basis.