Latrobe garbage fees could skyrocket in next waste contract

Latrobe residents could see their garbage collection rates nearly double for bag collection and go up by more than 60% for others if the lone bid for waste removal is accepted, according to city manager Terry Carcella.

County Hauling of Rostraver was the only company to submit an early bid as Latrobe considers its garbage collection options for 2026 and beyond — once its current hauling contract with Republic Services expires.

Under the County Hauling bid, the quarterly rate for bag collection in 2026 would be $129, representing an 87% increase from the fee of $69 that is currently charged under the Republic contract and is set to remain the same in 2025. The quarterly fee would jump by 63.5%, from $85 to $139, for residents who place their trash in larger toter containers that can be emptied mechanically into garbage trucks instead of manually by workers.

Those rates include additional collection of household recyclable items, which is mandated in Latrobe under state regulations.

For the remaining four years of the potential contract, County Hauling has proposed an annual 8% rate increase, Carcella said.

Carcella noted the Republic contract was hammered out before the covid-19 pandemic arrived and contributed to a sharp increase in operating costs for many industries including garbage hauling.

“After covid, labor, equipment, parts, trucks, insurance, fuel — you name it, everything has gone through the roof,” said Michael Liscinski, municipal sales manager for County Hauling.

Among area communities the company currently serves are Hempfield, Sewickley and South Huntingdon townships, and Plum Borough.

Latrobe sought early bids for a followup hauling contract so it will have time to consider alternate options, according to Carcella. He said those options could include approving just the most favorable elements of the contract, which features separate cost figures for residential collection, commercial refuse collection and recycling, as well as options for collecting garbage in any or all of three geographical districts in the city.

Other possibilities could include seeking a new round of bids under revised specifications and considering if it would be more feasible for the city to handle collections in-house, using its waste transfer station.

Republic previously had offered to renew its hauling contract for a single year, 2026, at a 2% increase in collection fees.

“We really need to pay attention what we’re doing for 2026 and 2027,” Carcella said about collection options. “By (bidding) it early enough, we know there’s going to be an increase, so we can hopefully adjust our administration cost.”

Spokesperson Renee Shipley told council Republic didn’t submit a bid under the terms the city required — maintaining both bag and toter collection options — because it wants to rely primarily on use of the toters, which it calls carts, in order to enhance safety for its workers, improve service and contain costs.

While about a third of Latrobe’s residential customers are using carts already, Shipley said the company wants to increase that to 80%. One of the benefits of using carts is it reduces the amount of manual lifting, and potential for injuries, that the hauler’s workers experience, she said.

“It helps keep animals out of your garbage,” she added.

“I don’t want to see the bag service go away in town,” council member Dawn Vavick said, suggesting it is the best option for many elderly residents who generate only a limited amount of garbage. “They’re not going to pull a toter cart out to the curb and back.”

Shipley acknowledged Republic garbage crews still may have to work manually to collect bulk items and to pick up any trash that is placed beyond the reach of the truck’s automated arm.

She said, if residents increase the amount of items they recycle instead of including them in the garbage stream, it could help to reduce costs.

“If we can get recycling up to a better level, you would have less to put in your cart,” she said.

Carcella agreed that the city needs to do a better job encouraging residents to recycle. Figures for the amount of material city residents recycle weren’t immediately available.