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Baker City to add curbside recycling; contractor says on‑route service will raise rates about 26%
Summary
Baker City Council approved a sanitation contractor’s plan to add on‑route recycling and ordered new trucks and carts; the contractor told council the incremental cost to residential service is about 26%, with an additional ~4.5% to cover inflation since 2023.
Council approved a sanitation rate proposal Oct. 14 after a presentation from Steven Henry of Bigger Sanitary Service outlining plans to move from depot collection to on‑route recycling.
Henry said his company signed a contract with the Circular Action Alliance (CAA), which has provided funding for trucks and carts; orders placed in August include a city route truck and about 4,000 carts. He said the plan aims for trucks and parts to arrive in March with an operational target of April 1. Henry said funding provided to Portland‑area sorting facilities has reduced disposal costs, so the major new costs are for collection operations (drivers, fuel, equipment).
On projected rates, Henry told council that the on‑route recycling incremental service is expected to increase residential bills by about 26%, with an additional roughly 4.5% reflecting that rates have not been adjusted since May 2023. "The increase is coming in at, say, I think it was 26%," he said. Councilors asked about depot bin deployment, cardboard separation, commercial routes and contamination screening; Henry said cardboard will remain a valuable revenue stream and that the depot will retain bins but residential customers will receive 95‑gallon carts and not have to sort beyond removing contamination.
After discussion, a motion to approve the proposed rate change was moved and seconded and passed (all in favor, none opposed). Council directed staff to communicate changes to customers and provide brochures and schedule information.
The council did not adopt a rate ordinance in the meeting text beyond approving the proposal and directing staff to proceed with customer communications.
