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Kingston debates timeline for new solid-waste contract; committee urges earlier vendor engagement
Summary
The Select Board and the Solid Waste & Recycling Committee disagreed on the timing for issuing a request for qualifications for Kingston's next solid-waste contract; the board asked the committee for formal recommendations and for a bidders' conference to collect vendor input.
Kingston officials debated a draft request for qualifications for the town's next solid-waste contract and whether to begin procurement 18 months or up to two years before the new contract starts.
Members of the town's Solid Waste & Recycling Committee said prospective vendors told them 12–18 months is the realistic minimum lead time for equipment and service ramp-up; several vendors told committee members that, under ideal conditions, 18 months is typical and two years would be safer. Committee chair Phil Coombs told the board the committee's recommended timeline was crafted after calls and meetings with prospective bidders and aimed to avoid repeating the procurement scramble the town experienced in its earlier contract.
At the meeting, a public commenter and former committee member, Chuck Margosian, urged the board to hold a bidders' conference so vendors can comment on the draft RFQ and flag items that may be impractical before the document is finalized. "The bidders' conference, the contractors' conference is really imperative to get that feedback," he said.
Some Select Board members expressed concern the draft RFQ circulating in the agenda package used a longer advance timeline than the committee recommended. Board members asked staff to route the draft to the committee for formal comment, to schedule a contractors' meeting so vendors can raise practical concerns, and to place the topic back on the board agenda for further discussion. The board also asked that the Solid Waste & Recycling Committee provide a written recommendation on the RFQ schedule and terms before the town issues a public solicitation.
Separately, committee liaison reports at the meeting noted collection-center operating figures for the first quarter of the year: the collection center posted a net debit of $2,372.37 for the quarter, averaged about 98 resident visits every two weeks, and saw about nine new users every two weeks during the measured period. Committee members said that operational data will inform the town's decision about whether to include curbside recycling in future procurement or to retain drop-off-only recycling.
