CARDS Becomes Paris’ Solid Waste Hauler

PARIS, TEXAS – Beginning September 1, CARDS becomes the franchised commercial trash hauler in the City of Paris. CARDS is working to complete contact with all commercial businesses to determine container size and collection frequency and establish service agreements. Dumpster and poly cart delivery to businesses is also underway. 

Any business needing to complete an agreement with CARDS should call 479-841-7895 or email [email protected]. Additional information, including CARDS service options and rates and a form for submitting questions, can be found at  www.ParisTexas.gov/trashpickup or call 903-784-9308. 

In August 2023, the Paris City Council selected CARDS to provide residential and commercial trash service in the city. The city had previously operated the residential trash service internally. The decision resulted from the increasing difficulty of continuing the service. For many months, the city struggled to staff trash trucks to complete regular solid waste collection. 

The city implemented changes, including increased compensation for trash collection crews and reduced the service from twice to once weekly pick-up before privatizing the service. “We tried to hire internally and sought temporary workers to staff  

the city trash trucks. The work is outside in the extreme elements of Texas weather and very physically demanding,” Traffic & Sanitation Supervisor Edwayne Samis said. “It  was to the point that new hires would stay only a few days, and we were pulling staff  from street repair and other maintenance crews to get trash collected each week.” 

The city contracted solid waste specialists to assist with the Request for Proposal process and private companies providing trash service in the town. During their January  23, 2023, meeting, SWS consultant Lynn Lantrip shared that he polled several trash service companies asking if they would bid if only Paris residential service were included in a contract. Lantrip stated that companies would not submit proposals without commercial service. He explained that the residential volume alone wouldn’t provide sufficient revenue for potential contractors. Lantrip suggested that if commercial trash service was included in an agreement, the city should expect a more significant number of proposals and more competitive rates. 

Four companies attended an informational meeting about the Request for Proposals, and two proposals were received by the submission deadline. City employees and elected officials review committee evaluations of proposals from CARDS and Waste  Connections subsidiary Sanitation Solutions. CARDS submitted the lower rate for residential trash service and lower rates for most commercial dumpster services. 

The contract with CARDS limits price increases to once per year based on an increase in the Consumer Price Index for the 12 months before August 31 of each year. CARDS  rates cannot increase more than that CPI rate or five percent, whichever is lower. 

The contract with CARDS does not include industrial customers, temporary construction roll-off service, or taxing entities like school districts or Paris Junior College.