Flint, MI Contracts Priority Waste to Take Over Trash Collection Beginning October 1st

Beginning on October 1st, Metro Detroit's well-known & established trash collection and dumpster rental service, Priority Waste will be the official trash collection company for the city of Flint, MI. This follows a competitive bidding process wherein the company was not the lowest bidder, but considered to be the most reliable service option. “The administration felt that [Priority] would be the most responsible,” said Eva Worthing, a member of Flint's city council. Research shows that competitive bids are not always won by the lowest bidder. In many cases, low bids are submitted by companies that are much less qualified to carry out the contract at hand.

Priority Waste won the contract by a 5-4 vote of the city council based on its record of reliable service and its ability to equip and staff new markets in short order. “We've been able to attract and retain our employees that we have, and add new ones as needed,” said Priority Waste Director of Municipalities, Dan Venet. He also noted that as an essential service, the company has had to work diligently to make sure that operations continue unabated. “I am very proud of our operations & team, as they've been able to figure it out,” Venet added.

Priority will now be responsible for roughly 34,000 trash pick-up stops in Flint. The company and the city anticipate a smooth transition with no interruptions in service as Priority takes the reins. The nearly twenty million dollar contract will run for a period of three years.

One change worth noting will be that residents will no longer have to keep track of separate trash collection and recyclable collection days. Trash and recyclables will be picked up on the same day “there will be no need to put [recycling] out on different days or every other week,” explained Dan Venet in a welcoming message to the community.