By DAVE HAMRICK
Staff Writer

Garbage trucks may soon rumble through Fayetteville neighborhoods five days a week instead of the current once a week.

But not to worry. Each individual neighborhood will still have only one pickup per week.

Garbage collectors Waste Management Inc. need to spread collection over more days each week because of Fayetteville's rapid growth, business development manager Gerald Matthews told City Council recently.

"We're getting to a point now where one day a week service is becoming quite hard to do because of all the growth you've experienced," Matthews said. With pickups spread over five days, "We'll be able to provide service for a lot larger period of time as the growth continues," he said.

Council gave Matthews permission to work with staff and develop a plan for dividing the city into five service areas, contingent on city manager Mike Bryant's approval of the details, including plans to notify residents of their new pickup days.

Matthews promised to notify each customer at least twice before making the change.

In other business, council delayed action for a second time on a request from City Cafe to reduce its proportionate share fees for sewerage.

In efforts to attract quality restaurants to the downtown area, council recently agreed to cut the fees 80 percent for top-notch candidates. But City Cafe's plans already were in place before that decision, said owner Doreen Schatte.

She argued during recent meetings that the restaurant is just the type of attraction that city leaders hope to entice to downtown, to attract more visitors to the area, and should get the benefit even though timing was a little off.

Councilman Al Hovey-King, chairman of the city's Development Authority, asked that the matter be tabled when it came up in July, saying he needs time to research the request so he can make a recommendation. He made the same request Monday, saying he has been out of town and is still unable to make a recommendation.

The request will be on council's work session agenda Aug. 12 and meeting agenda Aug. 17.