Residents of a three-year-old, 16-home subdivision in the Idylwood area south of Shreve Road never realized they were part of Fairfax County’s trash and recycling service.
Neither did the county staff responsible for overseeing trash collection, as service to the neighborhood never began.
So, for three years, members of the Aylors Overlook Homeowners Association paid a private contractor for pickups while also being billed for the cost of county services they were not receiving.
It wasn’t until earlier this year, when one resident observed the extra charge on their real estate tax bill, that the discrepancy came to light.
On Nov. 18, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors agreed to the association’s request that it be removed from the surrounding trash-collection zone — which has been in place since 1968 — so it can continue receiving private trash collection.
The matter played out over two separate supervisors’ meetings. It left elected officials wondering how many similar situations could be taking place, where residents are being billed by the county for trash collection but have no idea they are entitled to receive it.
“The notification piece continues to be a concern of mine,” Board Chair Jeff McKay said. “I hope we get better on that.”
Madison Homes built the enclave, located along Remingston Street, with the first residents moving in during 2022. The homeowners’ association contracted with Patriot Disposal Services to remove refuse and recyclables.
“Their service has been consistent, efficient and responsive,” said Eva Choi, who represented the association at a hearing on the matter in October.
When residents first learned they were being charged by the county as part of its 1A trash-collection district, several wanted to switch to the government service. But after realizing Patriot cost less than the county’s $610 annual charge, 15 of 16 property owners petitioned to be removed from the trash district.
Patriot Disposal provides two pickups per week compared to one for the county service, and often proved more customer-friendly than the county service that the neighborhood has received since August, Choi told supervisors.
Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik, who represents the neighborhood, was joined by McKay in backing the residents’ opt-out request — in part because “the exact same thing” had happened to him.
After moving into a newly constructed home in 2009, McKay and his neighbors paid the county fees for trash and recycling collection for about three years but did not receive service, he said at the Oct. 14 hearing.
As with the Aylors Overlook case, the department within the county government overseeing the construction of new homes did not communicate with the Department of Public Works and Environmental Services, which oversees waste collection.
As a result, the neighborhood wasn’t notified that it sits within a trash-collection zone, and service never started up.
“I am dumbfounded that we are sitting here 16 years later,” McKay said, wondering “how in the world our departments aren’t talking to each other.”
“How can that happen?” McKay asked. “You can’t build a house in the county without the county knowing it.”
County staff said, ordinarily, a home builder will let buyers and the county know when properties are constructed in areas that fall under the government’s trash collection service zones, which are mostly concentrated in the east.
McKay wasn’t pleased with that staff line of defense.
“Just casually suggesting that the builder should notify the county … to me does not seem like a good solution,” he said. “I’m a little disturbed and wonder how many more out there could potentially be in a better situation.”
At the same October meeting, Palchik similarly said she was “shocked” when residents brought the situation to her attention.
“To say disappointing is, I’d say, minimal,” Palchik said of how the situation played out.
Ultimately, the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted on Nov. 18 to overturn the staff recommendation that the neighborhood be forced to remain in the county’s trash system.
At the meeting, Palchik again pushed staff to do better.
“I expect we’ll continue to make improvements to the processes so we do not come across the situation in the future,” she said.
Currently, about 10% of Fairfax households have trash and recycling services through the county government. Others use private contractors.
In late 2024, county leaders began the process of potentially moving the entire county to a single, government-run trash service, but the proposal was put on hold in August after staff received what Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn called “a lot of questions and concerns.”
Photo via Fairfax County
