TO: The Solid Waste Disposal District Board of Commissioners
THROUGH: John A. Titkanich, Jr., County Administrator
THROUGH: Sean C. Lieske, Director of Utility Services
FROM: Himanshu H. Mehta, PE, Managing Director, Solid Waste Disposal District (SWDD)
DATE: June 4, 2025
SUBJECT: Request to Amend the Solid Waste and Recyclables Collection Franchise Agreement between SWDD and Waste Management, Inc. of Florida
__________________________________________________________________
BACKGROUND
On July 2, 2024, the Indian River County (IRC) Solid Waste Disposal District (SWDD) approved the Solid Waste and Recycling Collection Franchise Agreement (Agreement) between SWDD and Waste Management, Inc. of Florida (WM).
This approval was a result of a transparent public request for proposal process, a series of public hearings and public input that were duly advertised along with over 87,000 post cards that were issued throughout our community. The BOCC decided to provide universal weekly carted trash, carted yard waste, and bulk waste services to unincorporated IRC curbside residents. Enhanced multi-family and commercial services will also be provided to unincorporated IRC customers. Lastly, IRC will continue to provide universal weekly carted recycling services to all IRC residents.
In accordance with the agreement, staff and WM have been meeting on a routine basis for the proper planning and transitioning to provide a smooth process to minimize inconvenience to our residents, to prevent service interruptions and to ensure that all services are in place by the commencement date of October 1, 2025.
In accordance with the WM Communication Plan, WM issued approximately 77,000 post cards to residents during the week of May 15, 2025, regarding the delivery schedule for recycling, yard waste and trash carts. As a result, WM and county staff started receiving multiple phone calls and emails from Homeowner Associations (HOA’s) and other concerned residents that consist primarily of these three issues: 1) timing of the delivery during the summer and during hurricane season; 2) the issuance of new standard carts that are too big to manage in small garages and/or by senior residents and having to wait until January 2, 2026 for cart swaps; and 3) the desire to be exempt from delivery and service of the 95-gallon yard waste carts.
Staff and WM met on May 28, 2025, as part of the routine transition meeting to address these issues, and WM provided the attached letter on June 4, 2025, to memorialize the items discussed and the specific criteria that WM agrees to.
The purpose of this agenda item is to present the challenges that have been received and their proposed resolutions with recommendation from staff to obtain SWDD Board approval to formalize these changes in a future amendment to the Agreement.
ANALYSIS
The challenges and possible solutions are discussed below.
Timing and Delivery of Carts
As the current franchise agreement with WM is set to expire on September 30, 2025, which also includes the expiration of the 10-year warranty on existing carts, staff continues to stand firm that the transparent public process that was started almost two years ago and with an approval by the SWDD Board of the Agreement 14-months prior to the start of the new franchise agreement was properly planned. Staff and WM have executed the plan to ensure that all residents are provided with new carts prior to October 1, 2025. We understand that a summer deployment is challenging for our seasonal residents and the risk of a tropical storm/hurricane in our area is always a possibility; however, the logistical challenge to deploy over 200,000 carts has necessitated that we continue as planned. We ask residents to be patient and to help their neighbors, and we ask homeowners associations' (HOA) to be lenient within their communities.
Standardized Carts and Cart Swaps
To address the issue of delivery of standardized carts (65-gallon recycling, 95-gallon yard waste and trash carts) and the subsequent request for cart swaps starting on January 2, 2026, staff and WM have agreed to initiate the roll cart size swap program earlier by WM beginning to accept and process resident requests for recycling and trash roll cart size changes starting on October 1, 2025. This is the best compromise that can be achieved at this time as all the standard cart sizes have been manufactured and the recycling cart deliveries have started as of June 2, 2025. Please note, there is no alternative cart size option for the 95-gallon yard waste cart as the current service level of 4 cubic yards per week is being reduced to 1 cubic yard per week.
In return for the earlier start, WM has requested that IRC apply a dollar-for-dollar credit for cart swap expenses against Administrative Charges beginning October 1, 2025, until the full value of the cart swap costs has been credited. Staff support this approach as it does not increase the cost for our residents.
HOA Exemption for Yard Waste Carts
To address the issue of delivery of 95-gallon yard waste carts to HOA’s, staff and WM have agreed that it is still possible to make this happen in the limited time left before these carts start getting delivered in August 2025. However, please note, the original intent in the Agreement was for individual residents to receive their yard waste carts as the cost for this universal service is borne by individual property owners as part of their new non-ad valorem Universal Curbside Collection Services and for them to decide to return the cart with the understanding that they will continue to pay for this service. However, many HOA communities have reached out that they assess their residents to have a third-party landscape contractor for providing both yard waste maintenance and collection services. Therefore, they have expressed a strong desire to not receive the yard waste carts or the service with the understanding that the residents in their communities will be paying for this service.
Staff and WM have agreed to allow such an exception with the following conditions:
a. An exception is being allowed for the delivery and weekly service of Yard Waste Roll Carts for specific designated HOA communities within unincorporated IRC that request an exemption to curbside yard waste collection. The exception shall apply to the entire HOA for the duration of the initial term of the Agreement as well as any future extensions of the Agreement. The request must be by an authorized HOA elected representative attesting that all of their residents were duly noticed and that the HOA voted to make a representative decision in favor of the exception. The Contract Manager shall provide written authorization with the list of communities and specific location of homes by July 15, 2025, with assurance that the Franchisee shall continue to receive the full compensation for the monthly services to these communities.
b. In return, WM agrees to provide an equal number of yard waste carts and to waive the $100 fee per yard waste cart/delivery for any curbside resident within unincorporated IRC that requests an additional yard waste cart upon the participating customer agreeing to pay WM the applicable $120 per year ($10 per month) per cart collection fee prior to the delivery of the additional yard waste cart. WM agrees to offer this additional cart option for a one-year period until the total numbers of exempt homes are reached or by September 30, 2026, whichever comes first. This option is only available for yard waste carts and not transferable to trash carts.
c. Future HOA communities within Unincorporated IRC will be eligible to make similar exception; however, the equal credit and waiver for the yard waste cart and delivery shall not apply.
BUDGETARY IMPACT
The funding for solid waste and recycling collection is provided through a combination of the new Universal Curbside Collection assessment to unincorporated IRC residents for Fiscal Year 2025/ 2026, SWDD Landfill Fee assessments, and user tipping fees.
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTIONS
On December 17, 2024, the SWDD Board approved Amendment No. 1 to the Agreement to clarify certain definitions and the self-hauling provision, provide 95-gallon recycling carts to multi-family communities, gravity locks for multi-family and commercial customers was clarified and WM was authorized to implement their CLEAN program, yard waste cart purchase, delivery and service exemption was granted to certain communities within the Town of Indian River Shores, an exemption was granted to Blue Cypress Fishing Club, and a nine-month grace period was provided for residents that purchased a second garbage cart. As part of this process, these changes have been translated into a reduction in certain fees for our residential, multi-family and commercial customers.
POTENTIAL FUTURE BOARD ACTIONS
Approve Amendment No. 2 to Agreement.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
Infrastructure
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the Solid Waste Disposal District (SWDD) Board approve the implementation of an earlier cart swap program and to allow the Contract Manager to grant yard waste cart delivery and service exemption to Homeowner’s Associations within unincorporated Indian River County with direction to staff and the County Attorney’s office to return at a future SWDD Board meeting to ratify an amended Agreement for these approved changes.