Rolling Meadows to reconsider privatizing trash collection

After decades of in-house trash pickup, Rolling Meadows may be ready to look at contracting out the service sometime in 2012.

The city's recycling contract with Groot is set to expire Dec. 31, and the city staff has been looking at bids from three waste haulers, with the underlying possibility that trash collection and recycling collection could be done by the same company sometime in the future.

At present, Groot handles recycling, while the Rolling Meadows public works department picks up the city's trash.

As council members discussed the 1-year or 3-year bid options this week, some brought up the idea of instead looking into a 6-month contract to speed up the possibility of reopening discussion on recycling and refuse together.

If the city were looking to do a 1-year contract for recycling only, staying with Groot would probably be the easiest and best choice, Public Works Director Fred Vogt said.

The other two bids were from Republic and Veolia.

A six-month contract, or a six-month contract extension with Groot, would give the city time to start looking at the option of privatizing both trash pickup and recycling — but with a deadline.

“A whole year just stalls the whole process,” Alderman John D'Astice said.

Vogt said he hasn't talked to any of the three vendors about six-month contract options, but he will do so within the next week.

Another benefit of entering into a six-month contract is that it would be up in the middle of the year, when the council is not as busy, Alderman Mike Cannon said.

Council meetings toward the end of the year are often several hours long due to budget discussions, and lesser items get pushed back from meeting to meeting, so discussing the trash and recycling contracts during the summer could be helpful, Mayor Tom Rooney said.

Alderman Larry Buske suggested the city find out how to sell the trash equipment it owns, and ask if the chosen company would hire the city employees who would likely be let go if trash pickup is privatized.

Privatization of garbage service has been a touchy subject in Rolling Meadows, where residents have indicated they like the trash service that Public Works provides, particularly their willingness to pick up bulky items.

A 2010 survey of nearby communities with private garbage pickup indicated communities that have garbage pickup comparable to Rolling Meadows' pay more for it.