Lucas City Council approves solid‑waste contract amendment and fee‑schedule ordinance

The Lucas City Council on Oct. 2 unanimously authorized the city manager to execute the third amendment to the agreement for solid waste and recycling services with Community Waste Disposal and adopted ordinance 2025-10-01035 to amend the City of Lucas fee schedule.

The move follows a presentation from Wanda Smith, municipal coordinator for Community Waste Disposal, who reviewed service levels, customer‑service metrics, diversion figures and the contract adjustments that would begin Oct. 1, 2025. Smith said CWD provides weekly rear‑load trash collection using 95‑gallon carts, an optional concierge (door‑side) service, and residential bulk and brush collection (up to 2 cubic yards per setout). She also described household hazardous waste and electronics collection programs and said CWD destroys resident hard drives on request.

“We destroy those for you. Yes, absolutely,” Smith said when Council members asked whether hard drives are handled as part of the electronics program.

Smith told the Council the proposed cost adjustment includes a 1.1% CPI component and a CNG factor (noted in the presentation packet), with disposal fees unchanged. She reported the new residential charges as: trash $20.21 and residential recycling $8.23, for a combined residential rate of $28.44; the presentation described that as a 1.8% adjustment that includes sales tax and a 15% franchise fee.

The presentation included diversion statistics (January–August 2025: 6,451 diverted from landfill; 2024 full year: 4,840; 2023: 8,628) and a slide showing 871 tons recycled in 2024 with accompanying estimated environmental and cost savings. Smith also described recent site improvements, planned 2026 expansions for a materials‑recovery facility and maintenance area, and truck‑camera technology used to review recent incidents.

Council members asked for a published fee schedule for electronics (especially large flat‑screen TVs) and raised data‑security cautions for residents; one council member recommended that residents consider removing hard drives before curbside pickup, and Smith agreed CWD can also perform destruction on a resident’s behalf.

After the presentation and a short discussion, the Council moved to authorize the city manager to execute the amendment and adopt ordinance 2025-10-01035; the motion passed by voice vote and the Chair announced the motion carried unanimously. The ordinance will amend Appendix C (fee schedule) as described in the meeting packet. The Council gave instruction to staff to obtain and distribute the electronics fee schedule and to include recycling guidance in the city newsletter.

Action taken: Council authorized the city manager to execute the third amendment to the solid waste and recycling agreement with Community Waste Disposal (effective 10/01/2025) and adopted ordinance 2025-10-01035 amending the City of Lucas fee schedule.