Woodlake Community Association Curbside Trash Pickup – Position Paper
The Association will be seeking a contract with one contractor (possibly two) to provide curbside trash pickup AND curbside recycling pickup once a week, community wide. The fee for this service would be paid by the Association directly to the vendor. However, the Association would be receiving the funding to pay this bill from the same amount of an increase required in the general annual assessment.
Anticipated cost range is $10-$20 per month for curbside trash and curbside recycling. Therefore, there could be an anticipated increase in the annual assessment of $120 to $240; that amount would be an added amount to the then current assessment, or, it could be done as as an annual special assessment.
The Board of Directors can authorize an increase of up to 10% in any given year. Currently, that means the Board can add a maximum of $147 to the annual assessment next year. Any number greater than $147 (or $12.25 more per month) would require either: a) a favorable vote by the residents to increase the annual assessment more than 10%; OR, the Board could decide to break up the increase in the assessment to cover curbside trash pickup over 2 or 3 years; OR by drawing from reserve cash funds for a portion of the payment (in order to keep the impact on the assessment at or below a 10% increase).
If adopted, and a final contract is worked out with a vendor, this will be an “everyone is included” program paid for through the assessment. There will be no “opt out” provision. The idea is that by having one contractor, it would maintain the aesthetics of our community and provide the services at a lower cost than a property owner can achieve on one’s own. For example: Current “average” cost to have rear-yard trash pickup is $37/month ($440/year). If the negotiated price is $12 per month, then the resident would be saving $23 per month out of pocket in direct expenses. Noting of course, that the WCA Annual Assessment would increase by an example of $12 per month (or $144 for the year). In other words, the assessment would increase; however, resident costs would go down by more than the assessment increase. Thus, most residents could see an overall cost savings.
Initial approval of this measure does NOT mean one can put one’s trash out at curbside on May 1st.
Approval of this referendum only means that it is getting closer to a possibility. Actually, doing curbside pickup of trash remains only a concept until such time as the Board of Directors secures a contract(s) with a vendor(s) for such services community-wide.
Why? Why can’t one go ahead and put trash out for curbside pickup after the voting results are known?
The reason to not do so is that, without a uniform, community-wide pickup, the streets will likely have multiple trash cans at the curb, every day of the week in some neighborhoods; and most likely they will be different sizes and colors. In simpler terms, we will have a mess everywhere. Therefore, until there is a uniform contract in place, curbside pickup of trash will still be prohibited, and have to be enforced.
What about the always unusual circumstances of some curbside pickups?
(Examples being: For those who are handicapped? For those who’s driveway is on a sloped hill? Etc.)
Each vendor would have to provide a solution for these outliers. Such solutions would be requested to be included in their response to a Request for Proposals (RFP).
The Request for Proposal will include requests for the vendors to provide the WCA with five different price points.
We will receive quotes for the following:
• Curbside Trash Service & Curbside Recycling Service
• Curbside Trash service Only
• Backdoor Trash service Only
• Curbside Recycling Service Only
• Backdoor Trash Service & Curbside Recycling Service
Please understand, however, that if the community votes “No” on this referendum, curbside trash pickup will not even be an option.
Why not get an RFP out now and get the results back on the cost, before the community votes on whether or not to change the covenants to allow for curbside pickup?
If we issue an RFP now and gets quotes back, those quotes will only be good for a short period of time. Since we will need to do this (convert to curbside trash pickup) in conjunction with the new fiscal year (i.e. new budget year with an increase in the assessment; and depending on how much of an increase a contract would require), whatever figures companies provide would be outdated by December 2025 and no longer apply and thus would no longer be available to the resident/HOA.
REVISED: March 2025
