Kansas City neighborhood considers dropping WCA contract

Several complaints from residents are causing officials in Northland neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri, to reconsider its contract with Waste Corp. of America (WCA), Houston, a report by The Kansas City Star says. The $11-million-per-year contract is up for renewal in 2020.

WCA collections trash and recycling north of the Missouri River and south of 63^rd Street. The report says Troy Schulte, Kansas City manager, claims the city isn’t getting its money’s worth and would be better off taking the entire function in-house. City crew currently handle collection from the Missouri River to 63^rd Street.

The city has registered more than 5,000 complaints from WCA’s 55,000 household customers in the last two months, the report says. The complaints are mostly about the odors and health hazards from delayed trash pickups. Schulte and Michael Shaw, the city’s chief of solid waste management, said during a July 24 council meeting that extra trucks and staff had been added to the Northland routes.

Shaw says in the report that hot weather, staffing issues and a trash amnesty program that allows residents to put out extra bags at no cost threw Northland collections behind. He says the service should be caught up soon.

WCA subcontracts the Northland territory to a local firm, Jim’s Disposal Service, Kansas City, Missouri. Chuck Byrd, Jim’s Disposal president, says in the report its struggle to find workers willing to take on the mess is difficult. Byrd also says in the report that Northland’s continued growth means 65 to 70 new homes are coming on line every month, creating issues for drivers.

The Northland council members will convene another meeting in 30 days to assess progress.