The bad news for residents of Springdale, Cheswick and Springdale Township is that their trash collection bills will increase under a new joint contract.

The good news is that joining together for the bidding process prevented a larger increase, municipal officials say.

County Hauling, a division of Pittsburgh-based Noble Environmental, won the contract with the lowest bid. The rates will vary among the three communities. The contract has the potential for a six-year term with 2028, 2029 and 2030 being option years that the communities could decline.

In 2025, Springdale Borough residents will see an increase of $15 per quarter in trash collection, from $54 to $69; Springdale Township’s rate will increase $30 per quarter, from $45 to $75; and Cheswick residents will pay $22.55 more per quarter, from $49 to $71.55.

“This is very good in comparison with other communities,” said attorney Craig Alexander, who executed the bid on behalf of the three communities. “I attribute that to doing that with two other communities where there was volume there that brought that number down, which benefits every member of this community significantly.”

Springdale

Springdale Council President Mike Ziencik said during Tuesday’s council meeting that County Hauling submitted the lower of two bids for the communities. Shank/Vogel Waste Disposal was the only other bidder.

In addition to the 2025 rate increase in Springdale, rates for the following years haven’t yet been determined, Ziencik said.

“It puts us at a $5-per-month increase,” Ziencik said. “That is for unlimited bags.”

Springdale declined to accept a bid that included large household items because, according to Ziencik, that would have cost the borough roughly $50,000 more over the years.

“There was a separate bid for large household items, and it jumped it up big time,” he said. “Is it fair for somebody that doesn’t put out something big to pay for somebody who does? We didn’t feel a percentage was enough to constitute taking the higher bid.”

Instead, Springdale residents who have large household items — defined by Ziencik as items that don’t fit in a trash can — should contact County Hauling for a price and to schedule a pickup time.

Cheswick

In 2025, Cheswick residents’ $71.55 quarterly rate for trash collection totals about $286 annually. That includes unlimited bags or cans, yard waste and large items, council President Brad Yaksich said.

“When the council reviewed the bid specs, everyone agreed that we should keep it,” Yaksich said. “It is getting more difficult and costly to dispose of e-waste. Depending on the item, it can cost hundreds of dollars to find someone to take it.

“The e-waste and hazardous household waste will only add $20 a year to the yearly bill. It is very convenient. The people that use it love it. We need to do a better job of reminding everyone it is an option.”

In 2026, the cost for trash collection will be $306.36 for the year, or $76.59 per quarter. Quarterly rates then will increase roughly $5 to $6 each year after that.

Yaksich said the borough working with its neighbors for the three-way bid made it more attractive for bidders.

“All three municipalities are very aware of the changing environment in the municipal waste industry,” Yaksich said. “We all heard the stories of rates doubling and lack of bidders. We were lucky we got two bids. For Cheswick, there was a $364,262 difference between the two bids. So, it could have been much worse.”

Springdale Township

Commissioners Chairman Rick Schwartz said the $120 annual increase for township residents will provide the same level of service.

“It’s the same contract,” he said, noting residents still can dispose of one large item per month and still will be able to put their garbage out in bags with no need for trash cans.

That $10-per-month increase will raise the monthly per-household rate to $25, which will remain in effect through 2027, Schwartz said. In addition, the township commissioners have built in a little extra to that rate as a hedge against future rates increases.

“We actually take in less money than what we are paying for the (current) contract,” Schwartz said.

From figures township officials presented at Thursday’s meeting, the township owes $153,000 for the final year of its contract with Shank Waste Disposal but will collect only $151,200, leaving it $1,800 short.

The commissioners hope the extra money built into the new rate will prevent that from happening again and help to build a financial cushion for the future.

To get a head start on that cushion and take care of the deficit in the current contract, the township will impose the new $25-per-month rate starting July 1 instead of when the new contract with County Hauling begins in January.

Within that six-month window, the township will pay off the current Shank contract and amass a financial reserve of $49,500 by the year’s end.

The first two years of the County Hauling contract will add $30,744 and $12,402 to that surplus, adding up to a $98,836 cushion before leveling out in the third year.

“If nothing (unforeseen) happens, we would have a surplus that we could apply to those last three years,” Schwartz said.

“I think it was a huge thing us working with Springdale and Cheswick,” Schwartz said. “Everyone else I know of who went by themselves either didn’t get bids or got bids that were 70% higher.”

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