Commission advances ordinance to suspend commercial dumpster service for delinquent accounts

The commission advanced Ordinance 2025-12 on first reading to permit suspension or removal of commercial dumpster service for unpaid accounts. Staff and members of the public discussed high delinquency, collection responsibilities under the franchise agreement with Coastal Waste and Recycling, and the operational impacts of unpaid commercial accounts on service continuity.

Public commenters and staff noted that some commercial fees are higher than neighboring cities because of franchise and solid-waste surcharges and that the city was working with Coastal to audit collections. The ordinance establishes an escalation process: notice at 30 days, suspension at 60 days and removal of service at 90 days, with coordination between Public Works, code enforcement and the business-license division to address overflows and public-health risks.

Commissioners discussed whether commercial accounts could be placed on tax rolls (noting residential is typically easier) and asked staff for a comparative review of commercial rates, an audit of collections, and clarification of responsibilities for cleanup if dumpsters are removed. The commission approved the first-reading motion and will consider second reading and final adoption at a later meeting.

"At 30 days, we give them a notice. At 60 days, we suspend. At 90 days, we pull," the public-works director said when explaining the proposed enforcement timeline. Staff reported an approximately 145-account list of delinquent commercial accounts and said an audit of collections was under discussion.