Pottsville says new garbage hauler off to good start

Mar. 6—POTTSVILLE — Officials with County Waste and the city say the company got off to a good start this week as Pottsville's new garbage and recycling hauler.

City council awarded a $3,026,130, three-year contract to the Clifton Park, New York-based firm in January that went into effect Monday.

City Administrator Thomas A. Palamar said Thursday that his office had received two complaints about missed garbage, which he said was fewer than expected.

He said city officials are keeping a close eye on problems that might occur.

The company was asked to report all the calls it received to the city at the end of the week.

City officials met with County Waste representatives last month to discuss expectations of having good customer service. Palamar said regular meetings are planned.

In years past, his office would get a "large volume" of calls when a new provider was not familiar with the city's layout.

However, County Waste collected trash in the city under Krietzer Sanitation prior to the five-year contract with Audubon-based J.P. Mascaro & Sons that just ended, and that has helped, Palamar said.

County Waste collects garbage and recycling separately. Garbage is hauled to Commonwealth Environmental Systems near Newtown and recycling goes to County Waste's facility nearby, where it is loaded into tractor-trailers and taken to its recycling facility in Hanover Township, Luzerne County, for processing and onto the recycling market.

Jonas Kreitzer, vice president of business development for County Waste, said while the company has received a few calls about missed garbage collection, that's to be expected with 5,000 customers.

He said the company stayed in contact with city officials and returned to some homes if collection was missed.

"Things have gone smoothly," he said.

The new contract did not change collection rates, $51 a quarter, this year, though the fee to rent a garbage can from the provider increased by 50 cents.

The quarterly bill includes unlimited household trash collection, curbside recycling and one bulk item pickup a month.

Palamar said, however, that the price for each year of the contract varies, so fees will be examined over time to determine if changes are needed.

The schedule for trash and recycling pickup has not changed.

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