Republic Services acquires City Carton Recycling

Curbside recycling won’t change for Iowa City residents as a result of the sale of Iowa City-based City Carton Recycling to a national company, city officials said.

Republic Services Inc., which offers recycling and solid waste services in 39 states and Puerto Rico, took over City Carton Recycling on Jan. 16, Russ Knocke, Republic’s field communications director, said in an email.

Iowa City Public Works Director Ron Knoche said the city’s contract with City Carton will continue with Republic Services until June 30, and officials are discussing a possible one-year extension of that contract.

Iowa City in past years has paid City Carton to dispose of, and sometimes sort, recyclable materials the city collects through its curbside recycling program. Republic Services is now responsible for those tasks, Knoche said.

He said that the acquisition will not affect curbside recycling, and that he thinks the transition to Republic, for the city, will be smooth.

“I think they’ll be a good fit for Iowa City,” Knoche said.

Knoche said a decision on whether or not to extend the city’s contract with Republic will come after officials gain more experience with the company. If the city chooses to end the contract, officials would use a request for proposals to seek a new recycling services provider, he said.

Jennifer Jordan, Iowa City’s recycling coordinator, said the acquisition will not lead to changes for residents using the city’s recycling program.

“Everything has been pretty seamless as far as the transition,” Jordan said.

Knocke said the number of employees at the former City Carton location will not change as a result of the acquisition. He said Republic will offer the same services as City Carton, as well as some expanded services.

“City Carton’s team and platform further positions Republic for growth in our core service offerings, as well as expansion in eastern Iowa,” he said in the email.

Mort and Marcy Ockenfels founded City Carton Recycling, which provided recycling services throughout Iowa and the Midwest, in Iowa City in 1967.

Contact information for Bill Lundberg, former president of City Carton, could not be found, and employees at the Iowa City location declined to comment on the acquisition.

Former CEO and President Andy Ockenfels also could not be reached.

Iowa City’s plans to use a portion of City Carton’s land for creating a park in the Riverfront Crossings District also are moving ahead, said Jeff Davidson, the city’s economic development administrator.

Davidson said the city has continued working with members of the Ockenfels family — Andy and John Ockenfels own the land where Republic Services is now located — on a plan to use a portion of the land located in the Iowa River flood plain as part of the park.

“They’ve given us permission to include that property in our park planning,” Davidson said.

City officials have said they hope the park will be a new recreation space for residents living in the developing Riverfront Crossings District.

Davidson said the city is creating the park in part to mitigate potential damage from future floods.

“We know another flood’s coming, it’s just a matter of when,” he said.

Reach Holly Hines at hhines2@press-citizen.com or at 319-887-5414, and follow her on Twitter at @HollyJHines.