Board of Trustees split on new trash deal
GFL contract extension draws 3-3 vote
The Chesterfield Township Board of Trustees has put the brakes on a new trash contract, with some members calling for a competitive bid process.
A proposal to extend the community’s single waste hauler agreement with GFL Environmental USA Inc. was turned down in a 3-3 vote at a Nov. 14 regular board meeting. The current contract expires Dec. 31, with the option to extend the agreement for five years from Jan. 1, 2024, to Dec. 31, 2028.
“We had met with township officials when it was time to talk about years six through 10 and during those discussions we took what we heard back from them, understanding what their concerns and considerations were, and that prompted us to reevaluate our pricing … and to also add some benefits to the residents,” said GFL Community Relations Manager Don Barretta.
Enhancements to the contract included an annual hazardous waste disposal day and the coordination of recycling education efforts at local elementary schools. Residents currently leasing carts or containers from GFL would gain ownership of the property with no more monthly fees.
Additionally, the contract included provisions for emergency collection and disposal services, and a fuel escalator providing for variations in unit prices based on fuel indexes.
Customers currently pay $59.09 per quarter for waste collection. The agreement proposed the following new quarterly rates: $53.82 in 2024; $55.43 in 2025; $57.10 in 2026; $58.81 in 2027, and $60.57 in 2028.
The motion to approve the extension was made by Treasurer Kathy Elliott and supported by Trustee Kathy Vosburg. Clerk Cindy Berry and Trustees Hank Anderson and David Joseph voted in opposition. Supervisor Brad Kersten was absent from the Nov. 14 meeting.
“I cannot in good conscience approve an extension of a contract worth $10 million that our residents are going to get a bill for without at least doing some due diligence of bidding it out and seeing what else is out there,” Berry said. “I think that’s reasonable. I’m not opposed to GFL either.”
Berry said a request for proposals could potentially be issued within days, with
the board awarding a contract in December.
“There’s no reason not to do a bid process,” she said. “We can get it done expeditiously. … I think that would satisfy all the concerns of our not only our residents but board members, as well.”
Joseph also requested a review of how billing impacts rates. Currently, GFL bills customers directly, and delinquent payments are placed on tax bills. An alternative option would be for the township to take over billing.
“As a great provider I would be advocating for your continued service, but I think a bid process, or at minimum an inclusion of the billing must be part of this,” Joseph said.
“I can only see the residents’ position enhanced by bringing your competitors in,” he added.
GFL Regional Vice President Rick Vannan said the company would be willing to look into the billing process.
“We want to be great stewards of the community and great partners with you,” he said. “We’re always open to any suggestions or addendums, and if that’s something that came to us and you asked us to take a look at it, were happy to take a look at it.”
But when it comes to putting the contract out to bid, Barretta said it puts the trash hauler at a disadvantage.
“We gave you our best price and now we put ourselves in a position that we don’t like to be in. And that is everybody knows our price,” he said.
GFL currently services about 15,000 customers in the township. Vannan said GFL is the fourth-largest public company in the United States and the only company in the metro Detroit area with fully vertical infrastructure, owning landfills, composting sites and recycling centers.
“No matter what direction you decide to go, I know I would want to ask the question of where is my stuff going and do I have a guaranteed outlet no matter what,” he said. “We are the only company that owns the ability to handle those post-collection, manage where your stuff goes, and that’s important.”
The township’s existing waste hauler contract was approved in a 5-2 board vote in 2018, on the heels of a public corruption scandal involving its former waste hauler Rizzo Environmental Services Inc. Former Chesterfield Township Supervisor Michael Lovelock and other Macomb County officials were accused of trading favorable votes on trash contracts in exchange for cash. Rizzo was awarded the trash hauling contract after township voters authorized a single waste hauler operation for the municipality in 2005. The service was competitively bid, and Rizzo’s contract was extended twice. In 2018, the township opted to seek bids from waste haulers before deciding to stay with GFL, which acquired Rizzo in 2016.
“We love working with Chesterfield, been here almost 17 years,” Vannan said. “Didn’t start as GFL, but it’s become GFL, and we would love the opportunity to work with you.”