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Bloomington Seeks To Open Convenience Center To Charities

Bloomington Citizen Convenience Center
Eric Stock
/
WGLT
Bloomington's Citizen Convenience Center is open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays.

Bloomington's Public Works Department wants to make the city's newly renamed Citizen Convenience Center convenient for local charities too.

Director Jim Karch said he wants the waste dropoff site to become a collection point for local nonprofits which could accept donated materials on site.

“They could bring a box truck, they could have a dropoff point,” Karch said. “They could have a box where they do their own collection of clothing or shoes or furniture, those types of covered areas.

“The city would provide the location," he said.

The city has filed a request with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to change its permit to allow charities onto the dropoff site. Karch said the state has given positive feedback about the proposal, though he’s still waiting for formal approval. He said the Bloomington City Council has been supportive of the idea too.

“It allows citizens to have one convenient place where they can take their material and not just dispose of it but reuse it,” Karch said.

He said he doesn’t anticipate the city would charge nonprofits to occupy space in the Convenience Center.

Karch added more people are using the Convenience Center since the city implemented a $25 bulk waste collection fee. It takes effect on Wednesday when a three-month grace period ends.

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Eric Stock is the News Director at WGLT. You can contact Eric at ejstoc1@ilstu.edu.
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