Casella takes over Gloucester trash pickup Thursday as purple bags end

Gloucester's curbside trash and recycling moves to a new company Thursday, Oct. 1.

Casella replaces Republic Services, whose contract ended Sept. 30. The switch also ends the city's purple bag program. Trash and recycling now go in wheeled carts that a truck lifts with a mechanical arm.

The contract

The City Council voted 9 to 0 on June 9 to let the city sign a five-year contract with two optional two-year extensions. State law requires council approval for contracts longer than three years.

Public Works Director Mike Hale told the Budget and Finance Committee on Sept. 3 that he expects the contract to cost about $4.6 million this fiscal year. The city budgeted $4.92 million for solid waste and recycling for the year that began July 1. Hale said the per ton disposal fee rises 5% a year.

Hale told the council in August that a large part of the cost is recycling, which earlier contracts had handled at no charge.

Hale estimated that user fees could bring in about $2.5 million. The city's chief administrative officer, Kelly Dolan, said the general fund has historically paid about half the cost of trash service and will do so again this year.

What you pay

The fee is billed quarterly on the property's utility bill. Homes that are not on city water get a separate bill.

• Standard service: one 65-gallon trash cart and one 65-gallon recycling cart. $300 a year, or $75 a quarter. Every eligible home is enrolled in this unless it asked for a change.
• Size down: a 35-gallon trash cart with a 35- or 65-gallon recycling cart. $200 a year, or $50 a quarter.
• Seniors: residents 65 and older get 50% off at their own home, or $150 and $100 a year.
• Extra carts: $75 per cart plus $200 or $300 a year in service, depending on size. The city took its request form down during delivery and plans to post it again Oct. 5.

The program covers single-family homes and buildings with up to four units. Each unit is billed, occupied or not. Seasonal homes, short-term rentals and accessory apartments pay the full fee.

Hale told the committee a typical household spent about $208 a year on purple bags under the old system.

Owners who show proof of a private hauler contract can opt out. They cannot rejoin until October 2027.

What changes at the curb

• Pickup day stays the same.
• Carts only. Personal barrels will not be emptied. All trash must fit in the city cart with the lid closed. Extra bags beside the cart will not be picked up.
• Placement. Put carts one foot from the curb with the arrows on the lid facing the street. Keep them three feet from each other and from cars, poles, mailboxes and hydrants.
• Timing. Under the city ordinance, carts go out no earlier than 4 p.m. the day before and no later than 7 a.m. on pickup day, and come back in the same day.
• Carts stay with the house. Sellers leave them for the next owner.
• Stickers. Free house number stickers for the carts are available at the Department of Public Works and the mayor's office while supplies last. Bulk item stickers and purple bags are no longer accepted. Unused purple bags are not refundable.

Bulk items and appliances

The old yellow sticker program is gone. Residents now book and pay Casella directly at 1-800-CASELLA (800-227-3552), online or through its app. Bulk items are collected citywide on Fridays. Appliances are collected monthly.

Casella's price list charges $55 for items such as a bureau, chair, headboard, table or toilet, and $75 for a sofa, TV, washer, dryer, stove or other large appliance. Tires start at $20. Items over 200 pounds need special arrangements.

Casella is offering Gloucester residents 10% off home dumpster rentals for large cleanouts. Construction and demolition debris is not collected at the curb.

Yard waste pickup continues, with four weeks in the fall and three in the spring, and Christmas tree pickup continues for one week in January.

Old barrels

The city plans to set up a container at the DPW yard where residents can drop off old barrels and bins for free. Dates have not been announced. Residents can also keep old barrels for yard waste.

Early bumps

Casella began delivering carts in September, route by route, starting with the Thursday route. Several issues surfaced before the first pickup:

• The city said residents who got the wrong size cart should call the DPW for a next-day swap. Drivers cannot swap carts in the field.
• Extra carts that residents paid for will come after the citywide delivery is done.
• The city warned that Republic would not empty Casella carts before Oct. 1, so trash put in the new carts early could be left behind.
• At an Aug. 25 council meeting, councilors raised steep roads in Ward 5, streets lined with parked cars and streets where trash is set out at the end of the road instead of along it. Hale said the city and Casella were reviewing those streets. Casella said it bought a smaller truck for narrow streets.

Who to call

• DPW business office, for billing, cart sizes, discounts and opt-outs: (978) 325-5600
• Casella, for bulk items, appliances and carts damaged by collection: 1-800-CASELLA (800-227-3552)
• Program details and forms: gloucester-ma.gov/trashforms