Lockport to re-bid residential waste contract; staff seeks larger senior discount, separate billing

City staff told Lockport City Council members the city's contract with its current residential waste hauler is expiring and staff has issued a request for proposals to secure a new contractor and will return to council in October with bid results.

Staff said the current arrangement, in place with Waste Management since a seven‑year extension in 2017, included billing handled through the city's water bills and a long‑standing 50‑cent per month senior discount. Staff said the RFP asks bidders to separate billing from the water bill, handle their own customer service and billing directly, and to propose a larger senior discount. “We are asking for 15% discount, for seniors,” a city staff member told the council.

Staff described operational parameters they will require in bids: continued pickup days, 95‑ and 64‑gallon carts for residents, white‑goods and branch pickup, a recycling‑at‑your‑door option and optional add‑ons such as a dead‑animal pickup service. Staff said a mandatory bidders meeting is scheduled for the 12th and that the bid opening will be on Oct. 3; they expected a contract recommendation to return to council around mid‑October.

Councilmembers asked for additional information and clarifications. One member asked whether recyclables actually get recycled; staff replied that the contract includes provisions that require recycling to be processed rather than landfilled and that the company has a separate processing stream. Staff also confirmed the city will ask bidders to describe how recyclables are processed and to offer tours of processing facilities if requested.

On billing, staff said the current practice of placing the hauler charge on the city's water bill increases administrative workload for city staff; the RFP asks for the contractor to assume billing responsibility so that customer billing and service calls would be handled by the contractor, though the city would still accept some service calls for information. Staff said communities vary in frequency of billing (monthly or quarterly) and that a switch would identify seniors eligible for the discount directly through the contractor's billing system.

Staff also noted the city had stopped a cardboard‑drop program at Public Works because of high volumes from non‑residents and county processing now covers many of the county’s electronic‑waste and hazardous‑waste streams.

No formal council vote was required; staff will return with bid results and a recommended contract for council review.