Staunton plans new trash cans, monthly yard-waste pickup and bag‑tag system as part of refuse modernization

Public Works staff described a multi-part refuse modernization initiative at the Staunton City Council work session on Jan. 9, telling council the program is intended to reduce landfill tonnage, improve recycling and safety, and give the city tools to optimize collection routes.

Staff said the city secured $890,000 in ARPA funding for the program (encumbered) and had spent or allocated the money for equipment, can purchases and truck tippers. The largest single cost is the new cart rollout: staff said it ordered about 12,000 carts (an estimated $700,000 cost for carts) and fitted collection trucks with mechanical tippers. Staff said the vendor’s promised delivery window is two weeks once the carts are being delivered, but warned the rollout could take longer in practice and described a transition period for residents to evaluate volume and request exchanges.

Key program features and operational details presented by Public Works staff (presenter identified in the record as Irvin) include:

- City-provided carts: one cart per residential unit, choices captured by survey (45‑ or 95‑gallon); default for non-responses is the larger 95‑gallon can and staff will exchange at residents’ request during the transition period.

- Yard-waste pilot: a monthly opt‑in yard‑waste program using a green body cart with a tan lid designated for yard waste only; collection the first Wednesday of each month; the yard-waste cart requires a $50 refundable deposit; yard waste will be taken to the landfill’s mulching area for reuse.

- Extra-trash option: single-use bag tags (industrial-strength stickers) for occasional extra bags. Tags will ultimately be available for purchase (proposed $1 per tag); staff said they will distribute a small number of free tags with the cart rollout (staff discussed giving 5 to 10 free tags at delivery).

- Second cart option: households that genuinely need an additional trash cart can request one; staff said a second cart would incur an additional fee estimated at $12 per month but staff expect to phase that in after the transition period.

- Heavy-trash collection: the current spring two-week bulky-item pickup would be split into one spring week and one fall week to spread demand.

- Smart public bins: the city purchased 16 solar-powered self‑compacting public trash receptacles as an aesthetic and litter‑reduction pilot for downtown and parks; devices compact waste internally and include art‑wrap panels.

- Software and operations: staff reported a pilot of route and collection software (Rubicon) with a beta test scheduled for Jan. 28; annual software costs will be part of the environmental fund operating budget and staff will return with exact operating cost estimates.

Public Works staff said the initial public rollouts are scheduled for early spring 2025 for regular weekly residential collection with yard-waste following immediately behind it; staff later said the target date for the first deliveries is March 3. The presentation emphasized a multi-week transition to allow customer education and one-on-one corrections for misdelivered carts.

Council members asked about special‑size carts (commonly seen 64‑gallon intermediate carts) and whether the city had ordered them; staff said the commonly requested intermediate size would be considered in future procurements but the current order is for the standard 45‑ and 95‑gallon sizes. Staff also discussed reuse options for old cans and encouraged residents to repurpose old carts for storage, recycling containers or compost bins.

No formal council vote was required; staff will return with details on software costs, rollout maps and public communication materials ahead of the March rollout.