Medford to collect trash every other week starting in 2027

The city of Medford has unveiled a plan that would move trash pickup to every other week instead of every week starting in July The change is part of the city s expansion of its composting campaign Medford launched free weekly curbside composting in and received in state grants to grow the scheme Medford Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn noted the every-other-week pickup plan would reduce waste and save money We are really actively trying to help our conditions mentioned Mayor Lungo-Koehn We knew that we were paying more than we should be for trash removal so we longed to create a contract that suited our financial goals our sustainability goals While the Medford City Council approved the contract in City Council President Zac Bears wrote that Lungo-Koehn promised that any foreseen decision to cut back weekly trash collection would only happen after the City conducted robust population outreach and achieved clear benchmarks That never happened A solid waste task force heard concerns from our residents and got feedback declared Lungo-Koehn Several residents and business owners say they are worried about hygiene and costs It s an issue of hygiene more than anything else you know if that trash doesn t get picked up it s gonna smell reported Tripp HIll a Medford resident Let s find another way then if we can We pay a lot of money for city services and we should expect basic sanitation levels We shouldn t be talking about not picking up our trash for days at a time in a city that already has a rat issue declared Cheryl Rodriguez another resident Specific residents commented they are in advocacy of the plan and are eager to see the city compost more The first thing that s going on when we say we re going to reduce collection is to invite everyone to reduce their trash production You know trash collection is getting more and more expensive announced Ellery Klein who lives in Medford Others reported they can understand both sides I think composting it is a good thing They should promote it you know it s better but the two week thing it s a little tough noted Peter Triantafyllos Part Owner of Alamo Roast Beef and Seafood Lungo-Koehn stated the city will have more meetings and send out more information as the start date approaches She also expressed willingness to adjust that timeline although she stated the city would then have to reexamine how it s going to afford the cost of weekly trash pickups