Martinsville residents could see an increase in their trash collection fees as officials negotiate a new contract between the city and Martinsville-based garbage collection company First Piedmont.
Trash collection will be among the discussion topics at the Martinsville City Council meeting Tuesday at the administration building.
Tuesday’s meeting will count as the contract’s second reading. The city council held the first reading during its meeting on Dec. 16.
The meeting, which starts at 6 p.m., will also have a 5 p.m. closed session.
The city’s five-year contract with First Piedmont expires at the end of 2026, according to information provided to councilors.
A new contract means renegotiations of rates largely to accommodate changes that occurred since the signing of the previous contract.
“Increased operating costs incurred by First Piedmont Corporation, including but not limited to fuel, labor, equipment, and disposal expenses, have resulted in higher service delivery costs to the city,” reads part of Tuesday’s agenda.
“Since the start of the current contract, the landfills previously utilized by First Piedmont have closed, forcing the company to secure disposal capacity at a Pittsylvania County facility at an additional cost of approximately $8 per metric ton,” reads part of Tuesday’s agenda.
City staff warns that changes to garbage collection rates might be necessary to continue the service.
Currently, residents pay $19.80 per month for trash collection.
“The projected impact to residential customers is an estimated increase of $0.80 per household per month,” reads part of Tuesday’s agenda.
A comparison of current prices to the projected new rate shows that the suggested 80-cent increase could also be applicable to businesses. Currently, business trash collection costs $39.60 per month. An 80-cent increase for business would result in the projected rate of $40.40.
On-demand collection, which is currently $33.17, would increase to $33.97 per occurrence.