A new way to get your nickel back may be coming to Osceola.
The Osceola City Council approved 5-0 on April 2 to send Droppett Can and Bottle Redemption, a can and bottle redemption company interested in Osceola, to planning and zoning regarding proper zoning as it relates to land use permits for redemption trailers.
At the council meeting, Osceola city administrator Ty Wheeler told council that the city had been approached by a representative from Droppett about placing a can and bottle redemption trailer/mobile building in Osceola.
Founded in 2018, Droppett changes the way consumers can redeem cans and bottles by taking the work out of either feeding cans and bottles one by one into a machine, or taking them to a redemption center to be sorted and counted. Explained on their website, Droppett uses a “bag drop system,” where users register an account online and order customer-specific bag tags that are placed onto a bag of redeemable containers; those tags are how Droppett tracks and identifies specific customers’ containers.
Those bags are then taken to a Droppett redemption center, where a scanner below a drop door is used to read the bag tag’s barcode. Once the barcode is scanned, a drop door will unlatch, and the bag is placed inside. Each bag of recyclables must be scanned for customers to be properly credited. According to Droppett’s website, there is a maximum 10-day processing period once bags are dropped off to when a person would receive their funds. Once the bags from a drop location are picked up, it takes an average of 48-72 hours to process the bags and funds to show in an account. The trailers also have cameras, which have been used to identify whose bag is whose if the tag falls off.
Funds can either be deposited into a personal account, or organizations can set up accounts for fundraisers and the funds can be deposited there, using specific bag tags for those organizations.
“I like it cause you’re PRing your community…it cleans it up…can still go to local [things],” said Osceola mayor Thomas Kedley of the idea.
Council members expressed similar interest in the idea. Councilman Tom Bahls said that it could help more organizations who may not have another way to fundraise easily. A trailer could also be in a singular location in town. It was also stated that a redemption trailer that takes the work out of feeding a machine or traveling might compel some to recycle to easily get their five cents per can back.
“This is a great idea…Great opportunity for the community,” said councilman Jose Vargas.
In answering a question from Bahls about where a trailer would go, Wheeler suggested taking the matter to planning and zoning, to look at adding to an ordinance to allow modular can redemption centers in the highway, commercial and general business zoning restrictions, as well as adding some provisions to make sure the area is adequately taken care of and maintained.
“I love it - [it’s] exciting,” reiterated Kedley.
Councilman Dan Hooper also requested city staff to talk to other communities who use Droppett for input. Current Droppett locations are Des Moines on Euclid Ave., Corning, Glenwood, Red Oak, Clarinda and Urbandale High School.