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City begins outreach, consultant review ahead of potential solid-waste collection contract procurement or extension
Summary
Public-works staff and a consultant will report back to the council after resident outreach and a contract-review study to inform a decision on whether to exercise extension options or pursue a new procurement for municipal collection contracts that expire in 2028.
Public works staff updated the City Council on the status of the city's municipal solid-waste collection contracts, the public outreach planned for July and a consultant review of contract-extension versus reprocurement options.
Robert Blagen, public works director, summarized the contractual history: the city's curbside residential, multifamily and commercial collection contract with WM (formerly Waste Management) started April 1, 2018 and has contractual options to extend for two additional two-year periods at the city's option (through 2028 and potentially beyond if the city exercises extensions). Two additional dropbox contracts (with WM and Sunshine) were also executed in 2018 and have similar extension language.
Staff said they have launched public outreach this month (including a community-conversation session on July 15) and will solicit resident and customer feedback on curbside services via a survey and in-person materials; staff plan to present survey results to the council. The city has also engaged a consultant to analyze the existing contracts and potential procurement outcomes, including typical marketplace bids and pros and cons of extending current contracts under the existing terms versus issuing a new RFP.
Blagen reminded the council that the contracts include a 90% CPI annual escalator and that the curbside and dropbox contractors set a maximum rate but may charge lower rates through competition. The consultant report and survey results will be returned to the council for a formal decision about whether to proceed with a competitive procurement (which staff estimated could take roughly two to two-and-a-half years) or to exercise the city's extension option under the current contracts.
Councilmembers asked about lithium-battery fire risks in collection and the city's role coordinating with transfer-station and collection operations; staff noted ongoing discussions about battery handling and public-education efforts tied to the LSWFA grant item the council approved earlier in the meeting.
No final decision was made; staff will return with the consultant report, survey results and a recommendation.
