Chester's trash collection update

CHESTER- Chester City Council opened bids for public refuse collection for a second day summer trash pickup during a special meeting held Friday, May 31^st inside Council Chambers at City Hall. Upon resolution and review of the bids submitted by various vendor applicants, City Council resolved to deny all bids in favor of a resulting one day a week pickup schedule in adhering to the city’s budget and guidelines of its Act-47 classification. Though bids were rejected during Friday’s special meeting, Chester City Officials will continue to research avenues of availability to reintroduce the twice-weekly pickup schedule.

Department of Streets Highways & Public Improvements Director, Councilwoman Portia West had this to say regarding the recent resolutions:

“As both a Councilwoman and a longstanding member of the Chester Community, I feel it my duty to explore every avenue of possibility to keep continuity of services at a comparable rate for our residents. A few of our pursuits in my department include recycling education, maintaining the three day a week pickup, which currently exists by way of regular, recycling, and bulk trash, as well as, keeping our streets clean and our sewers clear of debris. We were eager to research extending to a twice-weekly pickup this summer, yet we must be cognizant of our Act-47 compliance [for financially distressed cities] and also in not burdening our citizens with additional fees and taxes. Our residents can help us keep our streets clear by becoming educated in recycling practices. When we properly discard refuse, we inevitably keep our streets cleaner, this means separating our recyclables to be picked up on the proper days.”   

For addition inquiries and concerns please contact the department’s customer service line at 610.447.7888.