Need to trash a tire or mattress in North Adams? It's going to cost you more

NORTH ADAMS — Tossing out bulky items like furniture at the city's transfer station is going to cost a lot more.

The price of discarding large items like mattresses, box springs and couches is going from $15 to $35, and disposing of car tires will now cost $8, up from $4.

The City Council took a second and final vote on the ordinance at its meeting Tuesday. Councilors gave the proposal an initial approval earlier this month.

The move comes amid losses at the city's transfer station — the site is operating at a loss of about $10,000 a month, Public Services Commission Timothy Lescarbeau said at a recent Public Service Committee meeting.

Northern Berkshires

North Adams moves to raise some transfer station prices. That would start to put a dent in the station's losses.

• By Greta Jochem, The Berkshire Eagle

Under the city's contract with Casella Waste Systems, the city is charged a minimum fee if a collection trailer is under a certain weight, according to Lescarbeau. So the city is losing money because bulky items are harder to pack down, Councilor Marie Harpin said earlier this month.

And more transfer station price changes could be ahead. Mayor Jennifer Macksey has said she plans to look at the price per ton fee — the price for trash weighed on the transfer station’s scale — during the upcoming city budget process.