Council approves $64.7M amendment to city contract for new trash and recycling carts; portal to go live tomorrow

The City Council approved a fifth amendment to the cooperative procurement contract with Rarig Pacific Company to increase the contract ceiling by $64,700,000, yielding a new not‑to‑exceed amount reported in the presentation as $103,500,000. Environmental Services staff said the amendment will fund purchase, assembly, delivery and reclamation of city‑provided trash and recycling containers as required by the Solid Waste Management Fee adopted June 9. About two‑thirds of the amendment (roughly $41M) covers the financed purchase of containers (to be financed through 2037), with the remainder (approximately $23.2M) for assembly, delivery and reclamation, and those costs are planned to be spread over 10 years to mitigate customer rate impacts.

Jeremy Bauer (ESD) described operational reasons for the replacement: an estimated one million deployed containers citywide, roughly 75% more than 20 years old and brittle, and the new containers will include RFID tags to improve route accountability and service metrics. Staff said the customer portal will go live the day after the meeting, customers will be invited to select containers through September 30, and deliveries will begin in October; if customers do not select, the default delivery will be 95‑gallon trash and 95‑gallon recycling containers with a 30‑day swap window.

Public commenters praised responsiveness and voiced questions about cost and recycling commodity values. Some speakers urged expanded composting and customer education; others asked for more up‑to‑date procurement documentation. During Q&A, staff said recycled material values are low and may net to about zero after shipping; councilmembers who supported the motion cited improved serviceability and accountability via RFID. Councilmember Elo Rivera moved approval; the motion passed on a recorded vote (6–3).