WEST WILDWOOD – If a Cape May County municipality used Gold Medal Environmental for trash removal, it is likely that town is paying more than their contract specified.
In community after community, Gold Medal has increased the price of their service, even with an existing contract. Using the impact of labor shortages and rising fuel costs, the company has sought accommodations and even threatened to leave trash on the street if negotiations were not successful.
West Wildwood Commission announced an agreement June 3 to pay Gold Medal an additional $6,200 for 2022. The borough’s budget shows a 2022 appropriation for solid waste collection of $78,000, which would make the $6,200 additional funds an 8% increase. Borough officials said they did not agree to Gold Medal’s initial request for funds and instead negotiated the amount approved at the June 3 meeting.
In Ocean City, the 2022 municipal budget will contain a local purpose tax increase to cover $770,000 in added payments to Gold Medal for the remainder of the year. In Avalon, the borough gave up its service returning empty containers to the side of the property in order to reach an accommodation for 2022. Wildwood also made a new arrangement with the company in order to prevent disruption of the essential service with the busy summer season about to start.
Gold Medal was fired as the service provider in North Wildwood after Mayor Patrick Rosenello said the city would not “make arrangements under extortive threats.”
