Port St. Lucie Secures $24M From Waste Pro, Ending Bitter Trash Hauler Fight

PORT ST. LUCIE — The city will collect $24 million from its former trash hauler Waste Pro under a settlement approved this week, ending litigation that grew out of one of the most visible service failures in recent memory — piles of uncollected garbage left rotting outside thousands of homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The city announced the agreement Friday, describing it as a full resolution of the lawsuit tied to Waste Pro's prior solid waste collection contract. Under the terms, both sides agree to release all outstanding claims and formally dismiss the case.

"This payment fully resolves the lawsuit and includes both sides agreeing to release each other from all outstanding claims and formally dismiss the case," the city posted on its Facebook page.

What the city plans to do with $24 million in settlement proceeds remains an open question. Officials said they will review options at future council workshops or public meetings — a notably vague commitment for a sum large enough to reshape capital budgets, reduce rates, or fund reserve accounts. No timeline was provided. Officials said

The dispute traces directly to the pandemic years, when residents flooded City Hall and local media with complaints about trash sitting uncollected for weeks. The city's legal position was straightforward: Waste Pro breached its contract by failing to meet minimum service standards.

Waste Pro's answer, laid out in a lengthy statement Friday, was equally predictable — the pandemic made everything impossible. The company cited driver shortages, spiking household waste volumes as residents stayed home, crew illness and quarantine, and supply chain delays affecting trucks and parts.

"The Covid-19 pandemic created unforeseen and extraordinary circumstances impacting workforce availability and operations across the country," said Keith Banasiak, Waste Pro's Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President, in the statement.

That framing — pandemic as force majeure — is the central factual dispute the settlement now buries without a verdict. Whether Waste Pro's contract contained explicit pandemic carve-outs, and whether city attorneys believed they could defeat such a defense at trial, is not addressed in any public document released to date. Officials said

Waste Pro characterized its 16-year relationship with Port St. Lucie as a point of pride and expressed hope the settlement funds would be "returned to residents." The city has made no such commitment.

The settlement avoids what would have been a costly and unpredictable trial. Officials said It does not answer the harder question Port St. Lucie residents have every right to ask: who is making sure the next hauler doesn't leave their trash on the curb for three weeks?

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