Sparta Approves $100K Leaf Machine

Sparta will have a new Xtreme Vac Leaf Machine to use this fall, after Aldermen approved the $113,700 purchase for the Sparta Street Department.

The machine vacuums the leaves and breaks them down into a mulch-like texture. Sparta Mayor Jerry Lowery said the city’s current machine is 24 years old and has been giving the street department trouble.

“Once we get that, that’s just going to be a better way to help keep the neighborhoods clean,” Lowery said. “I know it’s a lot of money but that is going to directly help the taxpayers with the cleanup of their property and things like that, so we think it’s a good investment.”

The city budgeted $100,000 in the current fiscal year’s budget to purchase the leaf machine. Lowery said even though the machine came in $13,700 over budget the city’s budget is still in good shape.

“We can make that up,” Lowery said. “We will figure it out, but it’s a needed item. If we can save $1,000 here and $1,000 there then we will come out okay in the end.”

Lowery said the leaf machine will be useful as the city deals with a large amount of leaves.

“There’s a lot of leaves,” Lowery said. “As the fall season is coming up and as winter is coming on, people start raking their leaves up and putting them at the side of the road. Then we drive a route and we hire a couple of extra part-time people to just rake leaves and rake it up to the edge. then we pick it up and it’s just a service to the community.”

Lowery said the city plans to dump the leaves at the landfill and use it for composting.