LANDRUM – Following a five-year contract with Republic Services that expired in June, the City of Landrum began discussing options to renegotiate the contract during their Oct. 11 regular monthly council work session.

City administrator Rich Caplan said the contract that the city signed in spring 2011 expired June 30, 2016. He added that each party, the city and Republic Services, needed to notify the other party 60 days prior to the expiration date. Neither party, according to Caplan, notified the other.

Caplan added the city is faced with two choices: either extend the current contract for one to a maximum of five years, or issue a new request for proposals for trash and garbage services. Caplan conveyed to city council members in their work session agenda packet that a new contract could be prepared, bid and negotiated before January 1, 2017.

City council members decided to table the discussion of the trash service renegotiation after council member Jon Matheis brought up the issue of recycling, citing the lack of foam recycling in the current contract. Caplan added that other addendums need to be worked into the current contract that notify residents of rate adjustments and resolves issues with pickup in a timely manner.

The current contract states that the “city requires all residents place garbage and recyclables at curbside for pickup.” These recyclables include aluminum cans, glass bottles and jars, number 1 through 5 plastic bottles and jugs, corrugated cardboard and newspapers. Matheis said foam, a number 6 item, should be added to the contract because recycling centers do take foam.

City treasurer Shelly Spivey said this varies from year to year for recycling centers due to commodity cost and said glass costs too much for the Spartanburg County landfill to transport to glass recyclers. Matheis said it is time to “start being nitpicky” about what can be recycled and added that New Mexico takes 99 percent of everything that is put into recycle bins and recycles it.

Mayor Bob Briggs said glass is important to the city and if the contract were based on weight, higher landfill fees would result when it comes to glass as opposed to foam.

If the city renews the current contract, rates for residential pickup will increase 22.4 percent from $7.35 back in 2011 to the proposed rate of $9 per month. Additionally, commercial dumpster pickups will see increases depending on the size in cubic yards of the dumpster as authorized by Republic Services.

City council member Billy Inman proposed the idea of, after being with Republic for more than 10 years, putting out a request for proposals to find a new trash service contractor. Caplan said due to a lack of flexibility to the city after the expiration of the contract back in July, Inman’s suggestion might not be possible.

Caplan said a meeting would occur between the city and representatives of Republic in two weeks. Inman asked Caplan to have Republic give council members a formal proposal to renegotiate the contract before discussion can resume on either extending the service or putting a request for proposals out to other potential bidders.

No action was taken on the contract during the regular meeting because two of the six council members, John Carruth and Randy Wohnig, were not in attendance Tuesday evening.