Middletown is seeking bids for trash, recycling, and yard waste collection.
The Board of Supervisors voted to approve the bid specifications this month as the township seeks the best deal.
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The current collection contract with Texas-based Waste Management expires on December 31.
According to the township budget, Middletown pays about $4.2 million for waste collection. In 2019, the fee remained steady at $340 per household.
With Waste Management, Supervisors noted there have been multiple complaints about missed days and spilled rubbish.
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Lisa Berkis, the township’s special projects manager, said a five-year contract would give the best pricing. She also stated one key component is that the township is seeking the contractor to provide a full-time customer service representative or team who handles Middletown residents complaints.
Currently, township staff collections complaints and comments from residents and relays them to Waste Management, which township officials said is not working well.
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Township Manager Stephanie Teoli Kuhls said the arraignment means a staff member fills about three-quarters of their time dealing with issues related to waste hauling.
At times, especially over the Christmas holiday where there is an increase in trash, numerous township employees spend time away from their duties working on waste hauling-related issues, Berkis said.
“We shouldn’t be doing the contractors work. The taxpayers are paying for a vendor to provide a service and they should provide 100 percent of that service,” she said.
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The township is seeking a vendor who would collect trash twice weekly, recycling and bulk items once a week, and yard waste numerous times throughout the year.
Berkis explained that the township likes the idea of automated collection, which requires less manpower, is more efficient, involves less risk to contractors, and creates a unified waste bin system. She noted that the trash bins used for automated collection are wheeled, had lids, and don’t tip as easily in windy weather.
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Middletown’s previous deal with Waste Management was a three-year contract with a two-year extension.
“I don’t think we’re getting the optimal pricing be causing [Waste Management is] bidding on three years and taking a gamble on the other two,” Berkis stated.
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