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Lincoln Park officials say contractor missed pickups; city invoking fines and tracking replacements
Summary
Mayor Tobin and council addressed residents’ complaints about Priority Waste’s missed trash, recycling and yard-waste pickups and delays in delivering replacement cans; the city said it is enforcing contract penalties and depositing fines into the sanitation fund while tracking deliveries and replacements.
Lincoln Park leaders told residents Tuesday they will enforce contract penalties against Priority Waste after weeks of missed pickups and delayed delivery of replacement trash and yard-waste containers.
Mayor Tobin described recent service as a “fiasco,” saying Priority has missed promised timelines, repeatedly changed plans and failed to deliver replacement cans. "They need to deliver the damn cans, complete the services, trash, yard waste, recycling, and bulk pickups on scheduled pickup days," she said, adding the city is invoking the largest fines allowed under the contract and will deposit those fines into the sanitation fund.
City staff and council members acknowledged that not all routes were affected equally, which makes issuing resident refunds impractical because the city cannot determine reliably which homes missed yard-waste placement. The administration said it remains in daily contact with the contractor and is tracking delivered cans but has not yet received full delivery reports.
Councilmembers also discussed the operational constraints: the company reallocates stock among municipalities, which has delayed local replacement deliveries, and higher seasonal volumes around holidays must be planned for in advance. The council said it will continue enforcement and pursue remedies available under the contract.
The city invited residents to report ongoing service problems so staff can maintain lists of missed pickups and replacement requests. No formal contractual termination or vendor replacement was announced at the meeting.
