Correction: Merriam will soon begin taking bids for a single citywide trash hauler. A final decision has not been made. An earlier version of the headline to this story made it sound more definitive than it currently is.
The city of Merriam is seeking a single citywide waste hauler.
On Monday, the Merriam City Council unanimously approved an organized collection plan that outlines a request for proposals — a formal call for bids — for a contracted single waste hauler to serve the entire city.
This comes after months of discussions, including three separate single waste hauler committee meetings, exploring what options are available for a citywide waste hauler.
The Monday night vote paves the way for the city to take the concept out to bid early next year, but there are still some unknowns.
“We don’t know how much it’s going to cost, we don’t know who the hauler is going to be, and we won’t know that until we get those bids back,” Assistant City Administrator Caitlin Gard told the city council on Monday.
Gard said she is “almost certain” a single waste hauler contracted through the city will, generally, cost residents less than what many are currently paying through individual contracts.
What is Merriam looking for?
The city of Merriam’s organized collection plan was developed by a special workgroup over the course of three meetings.
A single waste hauler in Merriam will provide services to more than 3,500 residences weekly.
The city’s plan calls for a hauler to provide solid waste, yard waste and recycling services to a single residence on the same day, generally between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m..
Additionally, the organized waste collection plan specifies the following, according to city documents:
- A five-year contract with a single waste hauler that has an annual option to renew.
- The hauler needs to provide a 65-gallon solid waste container and a 65-gallon recycling container to each individual residence at no additional cost, though a resident can pay $50 for a 35-gallon or a 95-gallon container for either solid waste or recycling.
- Residents are allowed one overflow bag of solid waste and recycling per pickup day and up to 10 yard waste items per week.
- A supervisor in charge of collection crews working in Merriam must be available to city staff via cell phone between work hours on collection days.
- The city will act as the customer service contact for residents during regular business hours and will establish a complaint process for issues that may arise with a single waste hauler.
Penalties for service complaints, such as missed pickups, un-returned carts or waste left in the street due to spillage, will be handled as follows:
- The waste hauler will pay a $100 fine for the first violation at any address in a 12-month period, a $250 fine for the second violation at the same address and a $500 fine for the third and any other subsequent violations at the same address.
- Missed pickups on an otherwise completed route will result in a $500 fine.
- All fines will be deducted from the next payment the city owes the hauler.
- If the hauler is unable to provide services in a timely manner to a specific neighborhood or the entire city — unless due to “an act of God” such as inclement weather — there is a $500 daily fine.
Residents, city council weigh in
- Councilmember Jason Silvers said a single waste hauler is likely to “level out” the price each resident is paying, because some residents who have the same provider currently may be paying different rates
- The differences in individual contracts are often the result of a resident calling and complaining about a price increase, Silvers said.
- The only two residents who spoke during a Dec. 9 single trash hauler public hearing were against the city moving toward a single service provider.
- This included one 80-year-old resident who said he only pays $62 per quarter for trash services and doubts that a city contract can get him better service or a better price.
- The same resident said he is disinterested in leveling out price differences between neighbors.
Next steps:
- The city is expected to take the request for proposals out to bid on Jan. 6, and keep it open until Feb. 14.
- Then, the city council will have more information about which single waste hauler is recommended and how much it will cost residents.
- If the city council moves forward with an accepted bid in April 2025, then services are expected to begin in January 2026.
Go deeper: Watch the city council’s entire discussion online here, starting at 16:13.
