Indianapolis-based Best Way Disposal employees collect trash in February 2020 in Greenwood.
Daily Journal File Photo
Whiteland residents will soon see a rate increase for their trash services.
The Whiteland Town Council approved a bid Tuesday for trash collection services from Best Way Disposal. The town also received bids from Republic Services and Rumpke.
Trash rates will be introduced at the town council’s next meeting in June. There will be a public hearing at that meeting.
“(Best Way was) very communicative, asked a lot of questions when we were going through the bidding … they wanted to know a lot of information and details and asked a lot of great questions,” Young said. “So I’m looking forward to working with them.”
According to the bids, the trash contract will last four years. The current proposal from Best Way would include a stair-stepped rate increase, however, there is room to negotiate a different rate schedule, said Carmen Young, the town’s director of administration. The council traditionally takes the average rate of the four years and uses that rate for the entirety of the contract, she said.
Best Way’s proposed rate is several dollars more than Whiteland’s previous trash company contract with Republic Services. The previous trash contract was approximately $13 per month, Young said.
“The contracts are only four years. We do have the ability, we could have extended a contract for a year or two or whatever or anytime we want to (we can) just go out to bid,” Young said. “Republic bid back on it. They didn’t come in as the lowest bidder.”
The proposed rates from Republic Services and Rumpke would have been more expensive than Best Way by several dollars per month.
“As you can see, the other bidders were more extensive with their increase(s),” Young said during the meeting. “(Rumpke’s proposed rate) would have been more than a 100% increase over what we’re paying now — or close to 100%.“
Republic Services offered a voluntary alternate bid that had a lower proposed rate than Best Way for years one and two but did not include heavy trash pickup. Instead, the company stated on the bid that residents could call the company and pay per item for pickup.
“With that bid, it is lower than Best Way but again, there’s a reduction of services that we’re currently offering to our residents,” Young said at the meeting. “So after reviewing the bids and services being offered for the bid packet, the lowest responsive and responsible bidder is Best Way.”
Young said every house in Whiteland would continue to get a regular trash can and a recycling can. Trash pickup would be once a week, with recycling two times a month and heavy trash once a month.
“There will be a lot of communication that will be needed because one, with a transition to a different company. First of all, the rate increase would be a public hearing … we can use our utility bills to notify folks as well,” Young said at the meeting. “But then with changing companies, we’re going to have to arrange new cart delivery, old cart pickup of the companies and kind of just that transition but that will be something once we are able to enter into the contract, we can come up with the best game plan to roll that out to the residents.”
The new trash contract will go into effect Aug. 1. The next council meeting is at 7 p.m. June 11.
