The Mercer Island Recycling Center will remain in its current state — vacant — until the city has a better grasp of the biennial budget.

On Monday, June 12, two Bainbridge Institute graduate students, Susan Borg and Tylor Jeffery, presented a public outreach report to the City Council. The document detailed a replicable process that the city may use time and again to solicit public input.

Cindy Goodwin, Youth and Family Services director, had completed an application requesting the students’ assistance. It was a trade: the city gained citizen input and a public process plan, and the students got real-world experience.

“It was an education,” Jeffery said of the students’ project and suggested that the city follow up on the students’ report with a formal statement to the community about what is to become of the recycling center.

Due to the upcoming biennial budget process and a lack of extra money to spend on special, non-priority projects, the Council decided to keep the center virtually unchanged.

In the interim, the city will continue to allow Farmers Market merchants access to the building for storage during the market season, free of charge. The restrooms will also be accessible during Farmers Market hours.

Another idea that piqued some interest would be for the Mercer Island Thrift Shop to use the space as a donation drop-off, sorting and packaging site.

“The only thing that they’re lacking now is a place to do that,” City Manager Rich Conrad said, adding that the shop is crammed for space.

He said he is reluctant to immediately grant the space to the thrift shop because he wanted to remain transparent, didn’t want to undermine public process and the conversion may require funds that the city does not have.

The recycling center status will likely remain the same through the end of the summer, he said.

Goodwin said she would love to have some of the space for thrift store use, but believes that whatever comes of the space, it can be multi-use.

“It can be for everybody,” she said.

Other ideas generated during the students’ public outreach include a gardening workshop, sustainability education center and bike repair space, among other uses.

“There are a lot of ideas, and it’s not clear which are pipe dreams and which are real,” said City Councilman Bruce Bassett.