Stephan Banchero III: Business is always picking up

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, May 6, 2026

The John M. Fluke Sr. Award — Recognizes an individual who has demonstrated entrepreneurial spirit and community leadership.

As Stephan Banchero neared the end of his acceptance speech for the John M. Fluke Sr. award, he shared an exchange with Edward Rubatino, former owner of Rubatino Refuse Removal.

“I’d go, ‘hey Ed, hey, how’s the garbage business?’” Banchero said. “And he looked at me and go, ‘You know what, Stephan, it’s always picking up.’”

Banchero was one of five people honored during the annual meeting of the Economic Alliance Snohomish County on April 14. The award is named after the founder of Fluke Corporation, an industrial test measurement company based in Everett.

In 2022, when Banchero purchased Rubatino Refuse Removal alongside Marc Torre, president of Sunshine Disposal in Spokane, it was an acquisition that made sense. Banchero not only came from a family business, but he also had more than two decades of experience in waste management.

While the Bancheros have been in the solid waste business since 1938, Banchero’s dad started Cedar Grove in 1988, Banchero said in an email. The company set out to create an outlet for residential yard and food waste to be composted, rather than dumped in a landfill. Later on, Cedar Grove added commercial food waste collection in Snohomish County from grocery stores and restaurants.

In 2018, Banchero became the president of Cedar Grove.

“Our goal as a family business is to continually pursue opportunities and invest in our community locally,” Banchero recently told The Daily Herald. “We were very proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish over all the decades.”

At the company’s Smith Island site, organic waste is turned into compost. Individuals can purchase bags of the nutrient-rich soil through retailers such as The Home Depot or buy in bulk from Cedar Grove locations in Everett, Woodinville, Seattle, Maple Valley, Bellevue and Tacoma.

Cedar Grove’s compost is for more than just growing. A compost-based media can be used in stormwater catch basin inserts to filter road runoff before it reaches the waterway. This includes filtering chemicals like 6PPD-quinone, which is released as the road wears down a vehicle’s tires and was linked to coho salmon deaths.

Since the acquisition of Rubatino Refuse Removal, Banchero has made equipment upgrades, such as new trucks and containers. Within the last year, the company also converted to a single-stream recycling program, allowing for one bin to collect different recycling items.

“We love the business and are really proud for the opportunity up there in Everett,” Banchero said.

Adjacent to the Cedar Grove Facility, the Banchero family and neighboring partners are working to develop a loop track rail system within 65 acres of available land. This would open “Snohomish County and the City of Everett to a whole new means of cost-effective transportation leading to new opportunities from all parts of the country,” and Quebec, he said in an email.

What many would consider a “throw-away” property, Banchero saw potential in, a nominator wrote about the rail system.

For the past decade, Banchero “has led—and financially supported—the redevelopment of this property into a much-needed railroad terminal that will allow freight to be easily loaded on and off trains,” the nominator wrote.

Banchero’s effort included collaborating with Smith Island property owners, raising the property above flood levels, working with public agencies and paying for the design of a railroad crossing and safer connection to Highway 529, the nominator wrote.

In the next two to three years, the rail could be operable, Banchero said.

Outside of work, Banchero enjoys spending time outdoors with his wife and three sons.

Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com; X: @JennaMillikan