Town prepares to solicit bids for trash and recycling service

The Select Board is scheduled to review draft language on Tuesday for a municipal solid waste collection and disposal services.

Municipal officials are moving toward a new trash hauling contract after gathering market data from waste companies to shape the next request for proposals.

Town staff say they surveyed the industry first so they could better understand current practices, service models and contract terms before drafting the bid package. The resulting request for information included 34 questions in 11 categories and was sent in June to 11 solid waste collection companies. Four companies that do business locally replied.

The Select Board is scheduled to review draft language on Tuesday for a municipal solid waste collection and disposal services RFP and decide whether staff may advertise and circulate it.

The town’s current agreement with Casella Waste Systems Inc. was approved in April and runs for 15 months. It covers curbside collection and disposal of trash and recycling for residential properties with four or fewer units, and it expires on June 30, 2027.

Officials are aiming to line up the next contract with the fiscal year 2028 budget cycle, according to a memo from town staff. The Planning and Public Works departments have been developing the plan with help from a community member.

The forthcoming contract is expected to keep biweekly pickup for trash and recycling and preserve the town’s trash Pay-As-You-Throw system. Staff used the information from the June survey, along with knowledge gained while drafting the previous contract, to prepare the new RFP.

Town residents also recently approved a separate solid waste change at Town Meeting in April, when voters funded municipally run curbside compost collection. That program began on July 6 and is described by staff as operating as planned.

Officials expect to release the RFP in September and open proposals on Sept. 30. Bids will be scored on a point system that weighs transition planning, the ability to preserve PAYT, bag revenue and current diversion rates, likely effects on customer behavior, the clarity of the proposal and communications, the bidder’s experience with similar contracts, performance quality and results from reference checks.

Town staff will then review the prices and proposals and bring a final recommendation to the board in October.