By Stephen Appezzato
FAIR HAVEN – Facing stark rate increases and a burdensome state rule, borough officials approved a three-year trash contract worth a little over $1.43 million during an Aug. 20 special meeting.
The contract will provide residents with two trash collections each week in the summer and one a week throughout the rest of the year, in addition to biweekly recycling pickup and quarterly bulk pickup.
The news comes after two months of deliberation. When the contract was up for bid in May, the only company submitting an offer was Fairfield-based Suburban Disposal, with a rate about 98% higher than the previous trash contract but with fewer bulk pickups.
Financially, the borough could have afforded the rate hike, but a state rule known as an “appropriations cap” limited the amount of money Fair Haven could spend on the contract.
During the special meeting, the borough council weighed the pros and cons of adopting a three-year or five-year contract. If the borough chose a five-year term, the yearly rate would be locked in for two years longer, potentially staving off another increase. However, by choosing the three-year contract, the borough would have more flexibility to work with surrounding towns to establish a shared service to lower costs.
“My personal view is we’ll look back and wish we took the five-year but I actually hope that I’m wrong. I hope that you guys are all right, and that’s the beauty of having different views on this,” Mayor Josh Halpern said. “I support, obviously, the group’s decision here and I appreciate everyone’s work on this. I know there was a lot of meetings and discussion to get us to where we are now,” he said.
Over the next three years, the borough council will likely work with neighboring towns to explore a shared service agreement and lower future trash collection costs.
The article originally appeared in the August 22 – 28, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
