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Universal City council hires consultant to draft solid-waste collection RFP after resident requests for rate options
Summary
Council approved contracting a solid-waste procurement specialist to draft an RFP for residential, commercial and construction waste collection after public comment urged options including differential cart sizes and pricing.
Universal City on Tuesday authorized staff to contract with a solid-waste procurement specialist to develop and manage a request-for-proposals process for collection of residential, commercial and construction solid waste services.
The item followed a public comment from resident Kim Iga Hart, who urged the council to include differential rates and cart-size options in the forthcoming RFP. “Currently, I pay for twice a week trash service when all I need is twice a month,” Kim Iga Hart said during public comments, urging staff to “keep all options on the table” as they draft the solicitation.
City staff explained the current contract with Waste Management will expire in July and recommended hiring an RFP specialist so a new contract can begin Aug. 1 next year with adequate lead time for the successful vendor. Lynn Trapp, introduced as a consultant who specializes in municipal solid-waste RFPs, described the firm’s role in preparing scopes of work and evaluation criteria and said vendor reimbursement typically covers the consultant fee.
Council members asked about process controls, whether council would see and comment on the draft RFP and how resident feedback would be incorporated. The consultant and staff said staff would gather frontline input from utility and customer-service staff (who handle resident calls and billing) and that the consultant will use that information to prepare the draft RFP, which will be returned to council for review before issuance. One council member stressed a desire to review the RFP language; staff said council would be able to provide input once the draft is presented.
Several council members and public commenters asked that the scope explicitly analyze differential pricing options (cart-size or frequency based pricing). Council voted to proceed with the contract for procurement services; minutes record the motion as carried.
The contract authorizes staff to proceed with RFP development; the final RFP, evaluation criteria and the vendor award will return to council for approval before any new collection contract is executed.
