06. Staff Report-Waste Management Update
Staff Report
Date of Meeting: May 3, 2023
For: Honorable Mayor and Council
From: Kyle Morell, City Administrator
Subject: Waste and Recycling: Status Report on Negotiations with
Waste Management
This report aims to update the Council on the negotiations with Waste Management (WM) and
recommend the next steps as the city determines how best to provide waste and recycling
services to Scandia residents.
Background:
At the January 4, 2023, meeting, the Council directed staff to pursue an organized collection
system for trash and recycling services. Organized collection is an optional use of the city’s
authority to choose the waste hauler(s) to serve the community. T he price households pay in
an organized collection system is generally lower per month for similar service levels than in an
open collection system due to increased efficiencies from serving every household in the
community or a particular route.
At the February 1, 2023, meeting, Council approved a notice entering the City into a required
60-day negotiation period with existing haulers. The notice was published on February 8, 2023 ,
for a negotiation period that ended on April 9, 2023. The Council also appointed a Waste and
Recycling Negotiating Committee consisting of Councilmembers Benson and Lubke, along with
staff and consultants.
The Committee met on February 22, 2023, to discuss what services should be discussed in
negotiations with Waste Management (WM), the city’s only current waste and recycling hauler.
It also reviewed current waste and recycling contracts from other area communities, the City’s
previous contract with SRC for recycling services, and created a detailed list of items to discuss
with WM.
On March 14, four committee members (Hurlburt, Benson, Fischer & Larson) held the first
negotiation meeting with WM representatives Pat Cosgrove, WM Area Public Sector Manager,
and Jason Hartman, WM Public Sector Sales Representative. The same group met again on
March 28, 2023.
Interim Administrator Hurlburt created contract language using the WM contract with the City
of Stillwater as a foundation, adding aspects of other organized collection contracts reviewed
by the Committee. That contract was reviewed by the Committee and Jason Hartman from
WM at our April 18 negotiation meeting. The terms of the proposed contract were generally
well received by all involved. However, there are still items that need to be discussed further.
Jason left the meeting needing to discuss certain aspects of the proposed contract with WM
attorneys. We are awaiting their response.
Current Proposal:
The proposed contract is seven years, per the requirements of Minnesota Statutes, for trash
and recycling for residential service only. The proposal includes rates for the remainder of 2023
(assuming the contract is approved before the end of the year). Rates would be adjusted
annually on January 1, as determined by the contract. The inflationary adjustment metric is still
being negotiated. The proposed rates are similar to those currently paid by former SRC
customers who have their rates with WM protected through September 2023. The rates do
not include the MN Solid Waste Tax of 9.75% or the county environmental charge, so caution
must be taken when comparing rates to current bills.
Interim Administrator Hurlburt worked with Waste Management and Bolton and Menk to
create a customer list for the agreement. The list provided by WM had numerous inaccuracies,
and coordination with Bolton and Menk using the City GIS program was necessary to get an
accurate list of all current and future customers.
Discussion:
At this moment, there is no follow-up meeting scheduled. Instead, we await a response from
WM and their attorneys regarding items discussed at the April 18 negotiations.
The exclusive negotiation period ends on May 9, 2023, after being extended for 30 days at the
April work session. It does not appear that we will reach an agreement before the exclusive
negotiation window expires. Therefore, the city may move to appoint a committee to study
options and prepare to develop a Request of Proposal (RFP) for waste and recycling services.
The city may also extend the negotiation period to continue working with WM on a contract.
The city can set the extension period as appropriate.
Recommendation:
Staff recommends that a 30-day extension be approved, with the option of additional
extensions.