County Convenience Center Is Available To Serve Area Citizens

— Benton County’s convenience center has served almost 600 residents since it opened in November.

The center is designed to give county residents a place to dispose of unwanted household items not normally picked up by a trash collector. There is no charge for disposing of items.

People have dropped off 110 pallets of old electronics, more than 650 cubic yards of old furniture and other bulky items and 120 cubic yards of scrap metal since the center opened, said Fire Marshal Will Hanna, who is in charge of overseeing the convenience center for Benton County.

The convenience center is open the first and third Saturday of each month from 8 a.m. to noon.

It is located in the 1200 block of Melissa Drive in Bentonville, directly behind the Road Department on Southwest 14th Street.

The biggest challenge thecenter faces is disposing of the electronics because of the time it takes to get each pallet ready for shipment, Hanna said.

All of the scrap metal and electronics are recycled. The county sells the scrap metal to recoup some of the costs of running the center and ships the electronics to a prison in Texarkana where they are broken down and reused for parts, Hanna said.

Hanna walked around 50 pallets filled with old computer monitors and televisions at the center on Thursday.

“Technology is changing so quickly,” Hanna said as he stopped next to an older big-screen television. “This used to be the TV we all coveted and now it’s a boat anchor.”

An average of 30 to 40 people use the center each Saturday it is open, Hanna said.

“We are giving people an opportunity to dispose of these items that are difficult to get rid of,” Hanna said.

County Judge Dave Bisbee said he hopes to be able to open at least one more convenience center this summer. It will be located in Garfield on Wimpy Jones Road. County officials also plan to open a third convenience center in Decatur off Bethlehem Road.

No opening date has been set for it yet, Bisbee said.

The convenience center is staffed with personnel from the county’s Environmental Department.

County officials will need to address manpower issues as the additional centers open, said Chris Glass, county administrator.

County administrator Greg Hines said he hopes to have construction of the current convenience center completed by the end of this month.

The cost of operating the center to date is $7,354, or an average of $1,050 each of the seven times it is opened, Glass said.

News, Pages 1 on 03/17/2010