LYNN — Following months of missed yard waste pickups throughout the city, a City Council subcommittee has put its contracted trash hauler on notice that it is unhappy with the company’s service.
For the past two months, city councilors say they have been fielding complaints from residents, who have not had their waste picked up at their scheduled time. The bags of leaves have sat in snow banks and have been soaked in rain storms for weeks while residents have waited for them to be collected, said Ward 2 Councilor Rick Starbard.
Starbard said he first raised the issue of the company’s poor service a year ago, but noted this fall’s yard waste pickup, particularly in November, has been especially “horrendous.” Some houses are picked up, while other houses or streets are missed entirely. Although many of the complaints have come from Ward 1 and 2 residents, he said there have been missed pickups throughout the city.
“(We’re) putting them on notice that they’re on thin ice with us,” said Ward 1 Councilor Wayne Lozzi, chairman of the Public Works Committee. “We’re not looking to terminate the contract, but we want improvements. It’s unacceptable, the service to date.”
The City Council Public Works Committee voted unanimously Tuesday night to order the law department to send a letter to Waste Management, which puts the company on notice that the city has major concerns with their service. Those issues include missed pickups of trash, recyclables and yard waste, and broken barrels caused by drivers, according to city solicitor George Markopoulos.
The legal move was made to “create a record of complaints,” and confirm that Waste Management will complete yard waste, or leaf pickup for the entire city by Saturday, as promised by the company. Establishing a record would allow the city to move forward with further legal action if service does not improve, Markopoulos said.
The city pays Waste Management about $5.1 million annually for trash and yard waste pickup in a contract that expires on June 30, 2024. The original contract with the company started on July 1, 1999 and has been amended several times since then, Markopoulos said.
Ed Pacek, a Waste Management representative, said he was receptive to complying with the notice. He noted the company has worked with the city’s Department of Public Works to offer an additional week of yard waste pickup throughout Lynn at “considerable cost” to the company, which started on Monday and wraps on Saturday.
“I think it’s clear from all the councilors’ comments this evening that improvement is the goal and we’ll try our best to do that,” Pacek said.
Yard waste pickup was scheduled to conclude on Nov. 30, but given the “severity of the situation and complaints,” the company decided to take on an extra week of service to make up for missed pickups, Pacek said.
Pacek attributed the missed pickups to a schedule change from the company that was not communicated properly to residents, a significant rain and windstorm that brought down more leaves in October and drivers who are unfamiliar with streets in Lynn.
Although the notice from the city does not legally start the termination process, City Council President Darren Cyr indicated he would be in favor of firing the company if service did not improve.
“I do have proof that your drivers are not respecting the city,” Cyr told Pacek. “If this is the way you guys encourage your guys to pick up trash in our city, I don’t think we want to continue to do business with you. If we’re going to continue our relationship with Waste Management in the city, you’re going to have to do a better job.”
For instance, Cyr said a Waste Management driver drove over his barrel two weeks ago and continued onto the next house without checking on the damage. Ward 6 Councilor Fred Hogan shared a video from the caretaker of a South Street property that showed a driver getting out of his truck on Saturday, whipping barrels over a snowbank and breaking one.
In addition, Lozzi noted there’s been a “significant reduction” in yard waste collected this year. In 2018, there were 602 tons of leaves collected, which dropped to just 443 tons so far this year, he said.
Pacek called the driver complaints raised by Cyr and Hogan concerning. “It’s not the way we operate, not the type of values we encourage and it’s something we take very seriously,” he said.
But Starbard said the blame may not entirely lie with the drivers, and could be stemming from a negative work environment. He said he received repeated calls from one Waste Management driver who said the culture of the company has changed, and that there was a “driver revolt” that was occurring against management.
Ward 7 Councilor Jay Walsh was also willing to cut the drivers some slack.
“I drive a truck myself,” he said. “It’s not an easy job driving throughout the city. We still need the job done right, but I don’t want to beat the drivers up. People aren’t always so nice to these guys.”
