HOOVER – The Hoover City Council continued a decision about a renewal of the city’s waste disposal contract with Santek after a recent increase in complaints.

The current contract is dated July 20, 2015, and set to expire on Sept. 30, and a proposed resolution would have extended the contract for an additional three-year period, to Sept. 30, 2021.

But the council unanimously voted at a meeting on Thursday, Jan. 18, to continue the measure.

Sam Dillender, general manager for Santek Waste Services, addressed the council, admitting an “uptick” in complaints but assuring city officials that the concerns are being addressed.

Santek records about 324,000 services—trash and recycling—in Hoover during a given month, Dillender said, and received 251 complaints in December 2017.

“Percentage-wise, that sounds pretty good, but it’s not,” he said. “It’s not where the standard is. We’re better than that.”

Dillender said some complaints are because recycle bins are not emptied by a recycling truck if the bin contains contaminated material, such as food waste.

Dillender said Santek has worked with City Manager Allan Rice to develop a flyers to be distributed around the city intended to educate residents on proper materials to recycle.

Clean recyclable material costs $15 a ton at the processing center, Dillender said, while half contaminated material costs $50 a ton and material deemed to be fully contaminated costs $100 a ton, with Santek absorbing the costs.

Council President Gene Smith said the contract renewal would be revisited prior to the expiration of the current contract on Sept. 30.

In other business, the Council passed a resolution calling on the Alabama Legislature to reconsider a bill related to sales tax.

The Simplified Seller Use Tax Remittance Act would have a “negative financial impact” on the city because it would allow online retailers who are eligible to pay a simplified 8-percent sales tax to continue charging that rate even if they acquired a physical retail space, Councilman Casey Middlebrooks said.

Alabama law currently requires physical retail stores to collect 9 percent sales tax in the city limits of Hoover.

In other business, the Council granted conditional use approval for a clubhouse, swimming pool and other community amenities.

The 2-acre site is located on the southern end of the Blackridge Cove development.

The property is owned by Blackridge Partners LLC and was zoned PR-1 Planned Single Family District.