Dewey elects Waste Industries for trash, recycling

For the second time this year, Dewey Beach is moving forward on a contract with Waste Industries to provide mandatory trash and recycling services for residential properties.

A negotiating team of Commissioner Courtney Riordan and Town Manager Marc Appelbaum are expect to present a contract at council’s Dec. 10 meeting.

As proposed during a Nov. 12 council meeting, property owners are required to set up the plan with Waste Industries, who would receive a 5-year contract giving them exclusive rights to residential trash and recycling in Dewey.

The town would field customer complaints.

Appelbaum said he was in favor of this because the plan is to make the contract performance-based and tallying complaints would be a way to measure performance.

Trash issues in Dewey are not new. Lingering bags of trash and unrecycled recyclables in town rights of way, garbage truck logjams, and puddles of trash juice were some of the reasons why town officials began exploring a town trash service in the fall of 2015. Ultimately officials decided in February to not move forward because of logistical issues, but did increase trash can violations from $10 a day to $25 for the first offense, $50 for the second, $100 for the third.

The trash and recycling committee was created in March to make the service a reality beginning in 2017.

Debbie Knight, committee chair,  said Waste Industries submitted the lowest price and has the best ability to execute the services required by the town. As proposed, the contract gives Waste Industries exclusive rights to residential trash and recycling services in Dewey for five years.

Knight said Seaford-based Peninsula Trash & Recycling also submitted a bid. Millsboro-based Waste Management attended the mandatory pre-bid meeting, but ultimately did not submit a proposal. She strongly suggested the committee and Waste Industries would like to have the contract signed by early 2017, so a letter can be sent to residential properties owners explaining the details.

Under the proposed plan, there would be two trash seasons – in-season, which would run from May 1 to Oct. 1, and out-of-season.

According to Knight, Waste Industries has agreed to an in-season cost of $27.32 per month, which includes trash twice a week and recycling once a week. The cost for an extra trash can would be $16. The cost for an extra recycling can would be $4. The valet service per residence would be $15 a month.

The out-of-season price would be $23.32 a month, with an extra trash can costing $10.75 and and extra recycling can still $4. The valet service would be $10 a month.

Knight said these prices are slightly better than her current service, which is with Waste Industries.

Commissioner Mike Dunmyer said in his case, the prices represent a modest increase, but he said the new service was in the best interest of the town.

Riordan asked if Waste Industries would have the ability to increase prices after the contract was signed.

Knight said the waste company had requested the ability to increase prices only if dumping fees increase. The commissioners all agreed that appears reasonable.

There is also dumpster pricing for condo associations. In-season rates would be $275 for 4-yard dumpsters, $357 for 6-yard and $445 for 8-yard; recycling dumpsters are $110.

The off-season rates would be $165 for 4-yard dumpsters, $214 for 6-yard, $267 for 8-yard and $75 for recycling.

Knight said it was brought to her attention some condos have two-yard dumpsters, but that has not yet been priced. She said she would find those prices out.

The plan calls for a change to town code associated to when bins can be placed in rights of way and collection times. As proposed, the collection time would be from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., a change from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; placement of the bins would be 5 p.m., Sunday to 8 p.m., Monday, and 5 p.m., Thursday to 8 p.m., Friday. The change is on the Sunday placement, which is now noon.

Former Commissioner Anna Legates said she thought 7 a.m. was too early.

Property owner David Moskowitz agreed. He said the pickup should be based around the hours associated with a building permit – 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Knight said the committee found the need for only two exceptions – residential properties in multi-use buildings who share dumpsters with businesses and condo associations with existing multi-year contracts. She said those contracts could continue, and once these were up, the condo association would have to switch to Waste Industries.

The change would affect the town, which is about to begin the second year of a 3–year contract with Peninsula for picking up municipal waste along Route 1, Route 1A, and the entrances of the oceanside and bayside beaches.

Everyone else, even if you’re not here all year, would have to participate, said Knight.