Waukesha new trash, recycling service starts to roll in

WAUKESHA, Wis. - Workers from all over the country are helping out in Waukesha in the next few weeks as the city delivers a big change to homeowners.

New garbage and recycling service

What we know:

A new garbage and recycling provider is impacting habits and wallets. The city went through something similar a decade ago, when it got bins for the first time.

Leaders say Waukesha is the largest city in the state that contracts out garbage and recycling.

It’s one of the largest projects in the city’s history. Waukesha’s current contract with Waste Management ends at the end of March; Johns Disposal Service will then take over.

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Changes you should know

What You Should Know:

For a while, homeowners will have four carts to keep track of.

Waste Management will pick up the old ones the week of March 24. Don’t use the new ones until the week of March 31.

Each home gets a new garbage cart and a new one for recycling. It adds up to nearly 40,000 new bins.

It marks the beginning of a month-long roll-out of new garbage carts for homeowners.

What they're saying:

Bob Coogan is used to dragging them to the curb, but this is the first time he has had trash cans delivered to his house.

"It's all new to us now," he said.  It’s going to take a little time to settle in for everybody."

Bulky pickups

Dig deeper:

One cost homeowners will notice right away – things that won’t fit in here will be charged an on-demand fee. Right now, this homeowner has 12 free bulky-item pick-ups per year. But under the new contract, it will cost them $45 to have certain things hauled away.

The city’s recycling and solid waste manager, Dustin Nolan, said not charging a fee would have added $2 million to the John’s Disposal contract.

"The reality is property owners have already been paying for bulky item pickups all this time – whether they used it or not," Nolan said.

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"We have a contract now that sees a little bit of an increase from the previous contract but not as substantial as it might have been."

Unlike the old carts, the city owns these. Meaning, if Waukesha switches providers again when this new contract expires in 2031,you’ll keep the carts.