Property owners in the River Market District are looking at paying up to $72,000 a year for trash pickup now that the city is no longer footing the bill.
Tim Heiple, a member of the district’s property owners association, said Deputy City Manager Bryan Day suggested to the association that the city, the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau (which now operates the River Market) and the Central Arkansas Library System would contribute $45,000. Or the district could go with the low bid of $30,000 for weekends only, to be paid entirely by private property owners.
Heiple said its unsure how many property owners want to participate — they can’t be forced to — and he said some object to a charge based on street frontage alone, rather than proximity to the market and restaurants. He said some owners propose to clean the streets in front of their businesses themselves.
The association may take up the various scenarios on paying for trash pickup on Friday.