Lincoln County will assume handling the solid waste service itself.
The current short-term contract for solid waste hauling with Western Elite expires Jan. 31, and at the county commission meeting Jan. 3, commission members accepted the recommendations to not accept the bids made regarding the service, but rather have the county take over the operation.
County Planning and Building Director Cory Lytle, a member of the solid waste committee that has been working on the issue since last summer, said bids received from the two companies who responded to a request for proposal were just too high for the county to undertake when all the factors were taken under consideration. ?A little too high for what we basically have a budget for,? he said.
One factor in particular Lytle mentioned was that the bids received were for hauling only, not the operation of the Crestline landfill, which would have added more expense.
Western Elite?s bid was $514,944 a year to serve the entire county on a four-year contract. On the same bid, Arrowhead Waste Service of St. George, Utah was $537,674. Arrowhead also gave a bid of $484,416 which would involve utilizing the existing bins Lincoln County obtained when it bought out Recology.
Commissioners approved hiring up to two additional full-time employees. Lytle said advertisements for r?sum?s and applications will be requested for up to two positions hired by the end of the month to operate and drive truck and provide service with the front-end loaders and roll off trucks and dumpsters purchased from Recology.
Commissioner Kevin Phillips, former board chairman, recommended taking action quickly. ?We won?t have anything moved on Feb. 1 if we don?t take action.?
Lytle said doing the hauling and operating the landfill will be a savings to the county, although overall maybe just a small one. ?In looking at the figures,? he explained to the commission board, ?we can do the hauling and operate the landfill, maintain the bin sites and some of the other ancillary things we are required to do by law, for just a little bit more than what the bids for just the hauling were.?
He added, ?The hauling bids came in at approximately about $40,000 per month. The county can both haul and operate the landfill for about $45,000 per month. That was an important part of the decision, trying to provide a needed and necessary service and keep costs low.?
Lytle said the county will work with Western Elite on a little bit of a transition. ?We are still going to remain close partners with Western in regard to some of the construction debris and Class 3 wastes. We have a previous partnering agreement with them to haul some of our C and D wastes. We will work closely with them, and you will still see Western Elite bins here and there throughout the county.?
He said further information will be forthcoming, ?so people will be well informed as to what is going on, and the reasons decisions were made. It?s been a long process.?