Middletown council votes to end ‘Save As You Throw’ pilot, approves new cart and dumpster rates

The Middletown Common Council voted unanimously on Nov. 3 to end the Save As You Throw (SAYT) pilot program, effective Jan. 1, 2026, and then narrowly approved a second, separate measure adjusting sanitation district rates for carts and dumpsters.

Supporters of ending the pilot cited inconsistent program data and poor rollout that left residents confused and the sanitation district exposed to budget shortfalls. At the meeting, residents and sanitation-commission members told the council they had seen multiple, conflicting compliance figures from staff and the contractor; several speakers said the program produced far lower participation than previously reported. “I told you so,” resident Yuri Bronsberg said, recounting what he described as an 8% compliance rate and accusing program managers of hiding data and political appointments.

Council discussion focused on two linked problems: how to end the state‑run pilot without losing operational options for food-scrap diversion, and how to set rates so the sanitation district can pay hauling and disposal costs after the grant-funded pilot expires. Councilmember Darnell Ford described the resolution as a step to put the district on a sustainable footing and to allow a new competitive procurement for a hauler. Councilmembers who supported termination said an RFP would let the city evaluate other options, while those who opposed parts of the package asked for clearer financial documentation before approving rate changes.

Because members could not agree on keeping the policy decisions bundled, the council divided the resolution into two votes. The first, to terminate the SAYT pilot, passed unanimously on a roll call (11–0). The second, on a package of rate adjustments to take effect when the program ends, passed by a 6–5 roll call. The approved rates in the motion were: 90‑gallon cart — new annual rate $480; 65‑gallon cart — new annual rate $430; new 35‑gallon cart — $360; plus a 15% increase to dumpster rates. The motion also authorized prorated supplemental billing for the remainder of the applicable cycle and directed a six‑month re‑evaluation of billing amounts.

Several councilmembers and members of the public pressed for retaining an optional local food‑scrap diversion option (the “green bag” program). Council members repeatedly raised a single operational constraint: the town’s current sorter and processor, a Southington facility (CWPM), is the only local operator that accepts the green bags and provides the sorting service; council members said continuing that service without a contract would require a new procurement. The council added direction that staff and the sanitation district proceed to issue RFP(s) for hauling and diversion options and come back with clarified cost data and options for preserving targeted diversion programs in some form.

The votes concluded a weeks‑long and often contentious local debate in which residents and commission members recommended keeping voluntary green-bag collection and urged better outreach and data transparency; proponents of termination said the pilot’s costs and poor participation made continuation fiscally impractical without new procurement and cost‑sharing arrangements. The termination and the rate package are separate council actions; the termination takes effect Jan. 1, 2026, while the exact implementation of the rate changes and subsequent billing steps were left to staff to operationalize in coordination with the sanitation district.

What’s next: staff was directed to prepare RFP language and back-up financial detail for council review and to return with an audited accounting of sanitation district finances in six months. The council also authorized prorated billing steps for customers once new rates are operational.