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GREENSBORO — The City Council voted 6-3 Tuesday night to keep the White Street Landfill closed to municipal waste.

The vote was prompted by Councilman Mike Barber's request for the city staff to compare the costs of the landfill with the transfer station.

Barber estimated the city is wasting millions trucking its trash to an out-of-county landfill.

Council members spoke in favor of evaluating the costs of the city's trash services. Some members want to explore alternative options for trash disposal or privatizing parts of the trash operation.

But the majority of the council voted that they did not want to consider reopening the landfill to municipal waste.

Council members Barber, Mary Rakestraw and Trudy Wade voted against Councilwoman Goldie Wells' motion.

When the landfill stopped accepting municipal solid waste — household trash — in 2006, it was counted as a victory for area residents.

On Tuesday, some of those residents were back before the council, asking them to keep a promise made in 2001 to stop dumping in the neighborhood.

"Many residents have suffered enough," said resident Ralph Johnson.

The pleas from the community during the council meeting's public comment period ignited a council debate about whether they should reconsider the way the city gets rid of its trash.

Barber said he had a duty to call the costs into question.

"I'm not attempting to be controversial. I'm not attempting to raise your emotions," he said. Many council members agreed with Barber's call to evaluate trash disposal costs and alternatives. "We should discuss all avenues of municipal waste," Wade said. "We're sending it to somebody's neighborhood. We have to think about that."

But Councilman Robbie Perkins, who was on the council in 2001 when it decided to stop using the landfill, said it isn't just an issue of money. It's about whether the community can trust the City Council to keep its promises.

In other news, the council voted to delay annexing several subdivisions on the east side of Greensboro after county residents complained they were not properly notified.

The developments — Whitehurst Village, Hartwood Village and Laurel Park — were among dozens scheduled to be annexed at the request of landowners or developers, usually in exchange for city water and sewer services.

But some residents said they were not informed by developers or real estate agents that they would become part of Greensboro when they bought their homes.

County residents said they should not be annexed now because the city can't afford to provide police protection, bus service or city amenities. They also argued that they did not want more taxes.

The City Council approved dozens of petition annexations on the northwest and east side of the city, but voted to delay those specific subdivisions for one year so that residents would have proper notification of annexation.

Contact Amanda Lehmert at 373-7075 or amanda.lehmert @news-record.com