St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter declared a state of emergency on Monday to temporarily lift zoning restrictions in a last-ditch effort to accommodate the city’s new unified garbage services.

Starting on Tuesday, the city transitioned from five separate waste haulers to a contract with one provider, FCC Environmental. But there’s a problem: The St. Paul City Council has not approved a location for a garbage truck dispatch center.

Carter said the council “plunged the city into crisis” after members approved a third-party appeal to block the facility for fueling, washing and parking near the intersection of Randolph Avenue and West Seventh Street.

He now says an emergency declaration is necessary to keep garbage collection on track until the final zoning details can be resolved.

“Trash service is a critical public service that impacts the basic health and wellness of every resident,” Carter said in a statement. “Working together to prevent a service disruption is every city leader’s most urgent job this week.” 

City Council members say their “no” vote stemmed from neighbor concerns for both the environment and pedestrian safety.

“I would love that to be a walkable space where we can access the river and not have a ton of big trucks back and forth,” said Greta Foote, a St. Paul resident.

Council President Rebecca Noecker has stated that despite the “no” vote, FCC Environmental will still begin picking up trash throughout the city beginning on Tuesday.

“I plan to vote in favor of extending the state of emergency for 90 days in order to give FCC time to relocate,” she said in an email Tuesday.

A St. Paul resident expressed his frustrations about the situation on Tuesday.

“Oh, I’m so irritated by it; I’m so irritated that the city council and the mayor can’t get their stuff together, to be nice about the language,” said Richard Pearce.