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Council approves two-year extension with West Coast Arborist after local-business concerns
Summary
Staff recommended extending the city's tree maintenance contract with West Coast Arborist via a piggyback procurement; some residents pressed for an open bid and to prioritize Monrovia-based businesses. The council approved the extension; transcript records debate but not formal tallies.
Monrovia — The City Council discussed and approved an extension of the municipal tree-maintenance contract with West Coast Arborist at the June 3 meeting after a period of public comment and council questioning about procurement and local-business participation.
City arborist/staff member Alex Tachiki recommended extending the contract for two years with two one-year renewal options, using an existing “piggyback” procurement from the cities of Rialto and Highland. Staff cited West Coast Arborist's competitive pricing across services and its emergency response during the January 6 windstorm as reasons for renewal.
Several residents and local-business advocates objected to renewing with West Coast Arborist without an open competitive bid. Speakers identified with the Mariposa neighborhood and other local-business interests said Monrovia should prioritize companies based here and allow local firms to bid. Supporters of West Coast Arborist pointed to consistent performance and lower prices.
Council discussion focused on the tension between procurement efficiency and supporting Monrovia-based businesses. Councilmember Edward Belden and other speakers urged that local businesses be given an opportunity to bid when contracts are next advertised, while staff said the piggyback contract allowed the city to quickly secure emergency and routine tree services.
The consent calendar motion including the tree-maintenance contract was moved forward; the recording notes that the item passed and that West Coast Arborist will continue providing tree maintenance after nine years of service. The consent calendar included 13 items (CC1–CC13); staff noted a clerical correction on CC8 (ending date corrected to 06/30/2028). The transcript does not include a detailed roll-call vote for the consent calendar items.
Ending — Staff said it will proceed under the extended contract and the council discussion indicated an expectation that future procurements would provide more explicit opportunities for local firms to compete.
