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D2 basketball: Redeemer takes down Cinderella Riverside squad in Class 3A

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Retired West Hazleton police officer sues borough over pension problems

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Coming up on two months since the city received one bid for taking over its garbage service, no action is expected on the issue any time soon.</p><p>&#8220;There&#8217;s a lot going on,&#8221; city Administrator Ted Wampole said Friday.</p><p>A decision could be months away as Wilkes-Barre continues to do its due diligence and negotiate with the union representing Department of Public Works employees who pick up trash and recyclables curbside.</p><p>&#8220;There is no time frame,&#8221; Wampole said.</p><p>Waste Management, of Taylor, submitted a three-year bid of $15.9 million, the only response to a request for proposals Dec. 28. But the company has not heard back from the city, which is considering privatizing the service to cut costs.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;re ready to talk and we&#8217;re ready to do the job,&#8221; said John Hambrose, a spokesman for the company that operates the Alliance landfill in Lackawanna County.</p><p>The city&#8217;s adviser, the PFM Consulting Group LLC of Philadelphia, recommended that waste collection be looked at when it presented its report on Wilkes-Barre&#8217;s progress in the state&#8217;s Early Intervention Program last March. PFM representatives are scheduled to make a presentation on Wilkes-Barre&#8217;s cash flow projections during a council meeting March 22.</p><p>Expenses outpace revenues for waste collection even with the city raising the price of garbage bags this year by 60 cents. The increase is budgeted to bring in $1.6 million in revenue, still far below the $4 million in budgeted expenses.</p><p>Another round of contract negotiations is scheduled for March 9 with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 410 that represents DPW employees. The union is working under the terms of a contract that expired at the end of last year.</p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jerry Lynott</p><p>jlynott@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jerry Lynott at 570-991-6120 or on Twitter @TLJerryLynott.</p></shirttailMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><videoMeta><p><table style="border:none;width:98%;" class="mceItemTable"><tbody><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoID:</td><td id="videoid" style="width:50em;font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoType:</td><td id="videotype" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">URL:</td><td id="url" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Embed String:</td><td id="videoembedstring" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Caption:</td><td id="videocaption" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Credit:</td><td id="videocredit" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Position:</td><td id="videoposition" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr></tbody></table></p><p style="margin-top:10px;font-size:70%;color:#555;">(use the &#8220;for files&#8230;&#8221; link above to associate attached files with this source)</p></videoMeta></div>

No decision on Wilkes-Barre garbage bid; talks continue with DPW union