Lee's Summit residents head to the polls on November 3 to decide whether the city should scrap its open trash-hauling market in favor of a single citywide contractor, a measure that has split homeowners and put a 111-year-old family hauling business on edge. The proposal would cap basic monthly service at $30 through 2028, but it would also end the ability of non-HOA residents to pick among the roughly 10 private companies currently licensed to operate in the city.
At least 10 residents spoke with KSHB 41 News on Tuesday, and many of them said they oppose losing the ability to choose their own hauler. Samantha Hoover, who has lived in Lee's Summit for seven years, said she would be very disappointed if she could no longer pick her provider, noting her current hauler has accommodated later pickup after missed collections. Lauren Styer said she supports keeping the choice, telling the station she simply prefers competition. One other woman interviewed said a single provider could work out fine, so long as it maintains her current level of service.
A Local Hauler Says Its Business Is on the Line
George Constable, whose family operates Constable Sanitation, said his company hauls trash for 12,000 homes in Lee's Summit and has operated in the city for 111 years, according to KSHB 41 News. Constable Sanitation also contracts with other cities and homeowners associations, but the Constable family said the ballot measure could significantly affect their customer base. George Constable said the measure would dramatically affect the business specifically because it is a residential hauler, per the same report.
Those stakes are echoed in reporting from The Local Communities, which notes that opponents, including independent local haulers like Constable Sanitation, have expressed deep concern over lost consumer choice and business displacement as the city's roughly 10 licensed haulers compete for residential accounts. Companies currently operating in Lee's Summit include Constable Sanitation, KC Disposal, GFL Environmental, and Waste Management, according to the City of Lee's Summit.
What the City Says Is Driving the Push
The city has said the ballot measure grew out of an issue identified in multiple citizen strategic plans, per KSHB 41 News. That traces back to Lee's Summit's “Ignite!” Strategic Plan, developed by community stakeholders and formally adopted by the City Council in 2019, according to the City of Lee's Summit. Public health and street pavement wear were cited as key factors in evaluating a single-hauler system at the time.
Missy Baron, who is part of a Lee's Summit homeowners association, told KSHB 41 News that residents' individual choices are taking a toll on local roads. The city has separately cited the impact of trash trucks on roads, along with reduced heavy truck traffic and environmental sustainability, as reasons for pursuing the change, according to the City of Lee's Summit. This marks the city's second major attempt at centralizing trash collection in 15 years, after a similar push in 2011 failed to come to fruition, per the city.
What the Contract Would Actually Cost and Cover
Under the proposal, basic trash service would cost residents no more than $30 per month, with add-on services available for an extra fee, the city has said. The Local Communities reports that the arrangement would run as a five-year municipal contract with up to three two-year renewal options, capping the basic rate at $30 through 2028 and limiting later annual increases to the lower of inflation or 4 percent. Billing would occur directly between the winning contractor and individual homeowners, not through the city.
Basic service would include weekly pickup of trash, recycling, and yard waste up to 10 bags or bundles, along with quarterly bulky-item pickups, a post-Christmas amnesty pickup, a senior discount, and free service suspensions for seasonal travelers, according to the same report. The city has confirmed that establishing a single hauler will not involve any new municipal sales or property taxes, nor will it be funded through the city's operating budget, since all service fees would be paid directly by residents to the selected contractor.
Who's Exempt, and Why the Timeline Stretches to 2027
The policy would apply only to single-family homes and residential buildings up to four-plexes. Commercial properties, apartment complexes, and homeowners associations with active private trash contracts would be exempt, meaning HOAs like Baron's could choose to keep their existing haulers or join the city contract instead, per The Local Communities.
Even if voters approve the measure, the timeline stretches well beyond election night. Missouri Revised Statutes Section 260.247 requires any municipality entering or expanding citywide solid waste collection to give existing private haulers at least two years' advance notice before service begins, or risk legal liability for lost accounts. Missouri courts previously awarded more than $1.1 million in damages against St. Louis County for skipping that notice, according to court records cited by The Local Communities.
Lee's Summit started its clock on April 15, 2025, when the City Council voted to declare its intent to establish contracted residential trash services, followed by formal notices issued to haulers on June 18, 2025, according to the City of Lee's Summit. That statutory requirement means a single-hauler system cannot begin before July 2027 at the earliest, with the city's own timeline putting a launch window between July 1, 2027, and June 1, 2028. If voters approve the measure, the City Council will evaluate contractor proposals and award a single contract only after election results are certified.
