SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diego's Environmental Services Department unveiled a new price structure for trash pick-up across the city on Wednesday, after months of public feedback.
Initially, the Department recommended a $53 preliminary fee after voters overturned the "People's Ordinance." That early 1900's-law made the city pay for waste collection for single-family homes. Measure B in 2022 eliminated it and allowed the city to begin charging for services.
"Measure B at it's core is making sure everybody's receiving quality service, and that everybody's paying for it. And right now that's not the case," said Kirby Brady, the City's Interim Director of the Environmental Services Department.
Under the new fee structure announced Wednesday, some single-family homeowners will now only pay around $37 per month.
There are three options for homeowners to choose from, all based on the size of the black bin for garbage.
The 95-gallon bin, which most families have now, will be $47.59 per month. A smaller 65-gallon container will be $42.88 per month. A 35-gallon trash bin will cost $36.72 per month.
Everyone will get 95-gallon bins for recycling and organic waste, no matter which option they choose. It's part of the city's effort to encourage people to reduce their trash by recycling everything from cardboard boxes to organic waste.
Under the new plan, all single-family homeowners will start with the 95-gallon bin. They can request a smaller bin and then have their bill prorated over time.
On a guided tour of the City's Collections Yard, Brady told ABC 10News Anchor Jared Aarons the new fees will help the Department upgrade the system and make waste collection more efficient.
"People have come to expect, let's call it, Amazon-level service on things where it's on demand," she said. "While we're not Amazon, the hope is that we can get to things like missed collections in a reasonable amount of time."
The Environmental Services Department will present the fee and all the changes to the full City Council on Monday, April 14th. They'll ask the Council to hold a public hearing, and then hold a final vote in June. If everything passes, Brady says it will take effect on July 1.
"Trash is just something that you want to be dealt with seamlessly. You don't want to think about it. The same way you don't think about turning your tap on and clean water coming out," Brady says. "This fee, as proposed, would go a long way to making sure this operation is well-resourced to provide the level of service the general public is expecting and I think they deserve."
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