UPDATED: Talking trash

The village of Coal City will have a second day of trash pickup this week, as the town transitions to a new waste hauler.
Less than 48 hours after the Village Board entered into a new waste hauling contract with Environmental Recycling and Disposal Service, the company began delivering its green disposal totes to the town’s 2,000 or so residential customers.
The new 4.5 year waste hauling agreement takes effect Thursday, Oct. 1 and can be extended beyond the initial term upon mutual agreement.
A new contract comes with a new price of $21.08 per household, per month, that’s an increase of 22 cents over the prior year.
Per the terms of the agreement an annual cost increase will take effect each October 1 at 4.3% per year bringing the monthly cost to $25.01 for the final six months of the initial contract.
Village Administrator Matt Fritz reports the new contract price came in lower than the cost outlined in an extension of the agreement with Waste Management, and provides for some additional services including weekly recycling for all households.
The change in providers will result in some changes including pickup dates, recycling and yard waste collection.
“We’re excited to work with the village of Coal City and your residents, and we’ve put together a program that we have seen be successful in other municipalities that we service and feel would work really good for your residents,” said Jay Ipema, president of Environmental Recycling and Disposal, a family owned company based in Rockdale.
Each household has received three 95-gallon totes—one each for trash, recycling and yard waste.
The company will collect trash and recycling each week, along with yard waste between April and the first week of December. After the December collection until the first yard waste pickup in April the lawn tote can be utilized for additional refuse disposal.
The yard tote—equivalent to four or five bags—comes at no added cost, and residents can be assured the biodegradable bags they have been using will still be accepted curbside from April to the first week of December.
There were about 120 residents utilizing the tote that was provided by Waste Management at an additional cost, now everyone will have the ability to utilize the service.
According to Fritz, any resident who does not plan to utilize the yard tote can contact the waste hauler directly to arrange for a pickup of the tote.
The biggest change for residents will be collection dates.
Instead of putting containers curbside for a Tuesday pickup, residents will place all three totes curbside for a Thursday or Friday collection depending on what side of the village they reside.
Areas located south of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe rail line will have a Thursday collection day and areas north of the rail line, including Prairie Oak Estates Subdivision will have their waste and recycling collected on Friday.
The first collections with Environmental are scheduled for the next two days, so residents were given two opportunities to take out the trash this week.
The new provider asks residents to have their trash containers curbside no later than 6 a.m. on collection day. A magnet noting each residents collection day was provided with the trash totes, as was a list of items allowed in each of the tree containers.
As in the past, residents can expect a one day delay in service on the six major holidays—Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day.
Through agreement, the village negotiated one annual curbside cleanup event, a date to be announced later.
The cost of the curbside pickup is rolled into the village’s annual cost, and according to the village administrator it was the curbside pickups and E-waste collection that were driving cost increases with the prior service provider who opted not to extend the existing contract with the village based on those terms.
Fritz called the curbside cleanups one of the best parts of the refuse service offered to residents. As these events allowed residents to put an unlimited number of items curbside for collection without an additional charge.
Neither Environmental or Waste Management wanted to bid on that service, so it was through negotiation that Fritz was able to secure one collection with the new provider.
Instead of two additional curbside cleanup events each year there will be just one, with quarterly E-waste collections. The change is that moving forward residents will be billed $35 for each television or monitor placed curbside for pickup, all other items will be collected at no cost.
Residents will now be able to dispose of one bulk item and one white good item per week at no additional cost.
The company will also conduct a collection of fresh Christmas trees for the first three weeks following the holiday on the residents regular collection day.
Environmental currently serves, among others, the villages of Diamond, Braceville and Channahon which recently entered into a six year contract with the company at a starting rate of $20.64 per household.
Along with residential service, the company will provide commercial collection from containers located at village facilities, as well as the fire and library facilities.
Special pickups are included in the contract price for services to the parks and trash receptacles along South Broadway.
Additionally, the company will provide the town with containers for special events, a select number of portable toilets for its parks and street sweeping services twice each year for the term of the contract.
Mayor Terry Halliday said the final contract represents a series of back and forth discussion to ensure they Village Board was making the best decision to ensure residents received the best service for the price.
He went on to say he’s looking forward to working with the new provider, who in turn had a similar comment.
“We greatly appreciate the ability to work with you and the village residents,” Ipema told the mayor and trustees upon their acceptance of the new contract.