VIDALIA — The Concordia Parish Police Jury awarded the parish’s waste management contract Friday to Metro Service Group of New Orleans.

The decision came after four bidders submitted proposals for the contract, which serves 4,326 parish residences.

President Jimmy Wilkinson said he and the solid waste committee had spent a little more than a week looking over the four proposals and negotiating with the companies.

“We wanted to express our needs in the parish and the concerns we had,” Wilkinson said. “And we wanted them to have the chance to offer us something different.”

After revisiting each bid, however, Wilkinson said only Metro met the specific needs of the parish.

“(The bid) is a little more than we wanted,” Wilkinson said, “but we’re happy.”

Metro was one of two bidders who provided the jury with a bulky waste option, which will dispose of large items such as furniture, tree trunks and brush.

“Looking at everything that week asked for, we decided it’s going to be Metro because they gave us the knuckle boom,” Ward 1A Juror Carey Cook said.

The knuckle boom loader is a waste collection grapple that can pick up heavier items and move them into a disposal truck.

The removal of bulky items, Wilkinson said, was “the biggest complaint in the parish.”

Metro bid a $13.53 per-household, per-month charge for regular pickup, a total of $60,885 per-month.

Metro also proposed an as-needed bulky waste pickup option at $350 per-ton.

The only other trash company which provided a bulky waste option was Waste Management, which proposed an extra $1.90 charge per house for biweekly bulky pickup.

Wilkinson said the board wanted an as-needed contract for the bulky waste pickup, as opposed to a regularly scheduled option, which only Metro provided.

Metro business developer Paul Hargrove and operations manager George Carter said they were ready to begin work in Concordia Parish.

“We’re excited,” Hargrove said. “Whenever they’re ready for us to start, we’re ready.”

Metro will begin service in the area on Jan. 1, 2018.

The previous contract-holder, Waste Pro, proposed the minimum monthly charge, with $13.05 per-house, per-month, but did not offer a bulky waste option.

Waste Management’s bid was $14.13 per-house, per-month.

Pelican Waste and Debris of Houma offered the highest bid with a $16.42 charge per-house, per-month and no bulky waste option.

The police jury began seeking bids for the contract on Sept. 25 and read the bids aloud on Nov. 8.

Jury members Cook, Willie Dunbar, Jimmy Jernigan, Joseph Parker, Adam Probst, Whest Shirley, Tommy Tiffee and Wilkinson were in attendance at the meeting Friday.