ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – After 20 years with the same two waste management companies, St. Johns County is making a big change to its trash services, and the cost to residents is expected to increase by $170 over the next five years.
St. Johns County Commissioners on Tuesday voted 4-1 to award a $28.2 million contract to FCC Environmental Services to take over trash pickup for the entire county. Commissioner Krista Joseph was the only person to vote against the change.
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Currently, trash pickup for the 111,000 residential homes in the county is handled by two different companies, Republic Services in the northern part of the county and Waste Management in the south. Those contracts are set to expire on July 31, 2024.
The bid from FCC was significantly lower than bids received from other companies like Meridian Waste ($40.5 million), Waste Pro ($42.3 million) and Waste Management ($51.6 million). Representatives from some of the companies who were outbid spoke in front of the commission and questioned how FCC was able to bid so low.
FCC currently services more than 500,000 homes in Florida, including homes in Palm Coast and in Palm Beach and Hillsborough counties.
The cost per household is expected to go up $170 over the next five years, but the increase is expected to be spread out. Households won’t see an increase next year, but there will be cost increases of $80, $60, $20 and $10 the following four years, respectively. Right now residents pay $254 a year for trash services.
When FCC takes over next year on a seven-year contract, with the option to renew two additional five-year terms, it will provide the same services as the current companies and will not use automated trucks.
Commissioners said they expect FCC to keep up the current level of trash collection and if they don’t there is language in the contract that would allow the county to get out of the contract or hold FCC accountable financially.
