Texarkana, Ark.'s recycling center will close indefinitely March 16, the city announced today, but its monthly recycling event, Green Texarkana, is still planned for the second Saturday of each month.
The center's closure will not result in any loss of jobs or other personnel changes.
The city's recycling coordinator, Brandy Chewning, resigned earlier this week, and city leaders plan to waive the current municipal hiring freeze to fill the position. She was the center's only staff member, and March 20 will be her last day with the city, said Public Works Director Tyler Richards.
"Staffing changes made it impossible to continue operation as we were," Chewning said in an earlier news release. "Several challenges in the recycling market are driving massive changes across the industry, and we would have struggled to meet those demands."
City Manager Kenny Haskin will waive the hiring freeze and fill the position, Richards said late Friday afternoon, adding that a candidate is scheduled to interview for the job Monday. An earlier version of this story quoted Chewning's news release, which said the hiring freeze played a role in closing the center.
The city will continue to hold its recycling drive from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the second Saturday of each month at East Third and Hazel streets. It collects paper, cardboard and household plastics.
Check out Sunday's edition of the Gazette to learn more about recycling in Texarkana.