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Home My WebLink About1995-05-25MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Hir r. i ii G THURSDAY, MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * I. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Crites convened the meeting at 4:15 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Present Councilmember Jean M. Benson Councilman Richard S. Kelly Mayor Pro-Tempore Walter H. Snyder Councilman Robert A. Spiegel Mayor Buford A. Crites Also Present: Richard J. Folkers, Acting City Manager David J. Erwin, City Attorney Mary P. Frazier, Deputy City Clerk Carlos L. Ortega, ACM/RDA Executive Director Ramon A. Diaz, ACM/Director of Community Development Paul Gibson, Finance Director/City Treasurer Gregg Holtz, Acting Director of Public Works John Wohlmuth, Assistant to the City Manager Lisa Constande, Environmental Conservation Manager III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - A None MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL b r r, i MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * « * * * * * « « IV. CONSENT CALENDAR A. LIES of the Regular City Council Meetings of April 27 and May 11, 1995, and the Adjourned Meeting of May 3, 1995. Rec: Approve as presented. B. CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AGAINST THE CITY TREASURY - Warrant Nos. 45, 46, and 47. Rec: Approve as presented. C. PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS as of April 30, 1995. Rec: Receive and file. D. MINUTES of the Palm Desert Promotion Committee Meetings of March 15 and April 19, 1995. Rec: Receive and file. E. APPLICATION FOR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE by SJB, Inc. for Cedar Creek Inn, 73-445. El Paseo, #11A, Palm Desert. Rec: Receive and file. F. CLAIM AGAINST THE CITY (#282) by June Bevan in the Amount of $112.00. Rec: By Minute Motion, deny the claim and direct the City Clerk to so notify the Claimant. G. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Sponsorship of the Palm Springs Suns "Cool Desert Nights" Promotion. Rec: By Minute Motion, approve a non -monetary sponsorship of the Palm Springs Suns "Cool Desert Nights" promotion. H. Lr: i ILK K from Shadow Mountain Resort & Racquet Club Requesting the Council's Support of the Extension of the Palm Springs Airport Runway. Rec: Refer to staff for report and recommendation. 2 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * s * * * s s * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * I. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Right -of -Way Transverse Easement with Southern Pacific Railroad Company - Cook Street and I-10 Interchange (Contract No. C09970). Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to enter into the Right -of -Way Transverse Easement with the Southern Pacific Railroad Company for crossing of the Railroad at the interchange at Interstate 10 and Cook Street. J. REOUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT of City -Wide Palm Tree Project, Contract No. C09740. Rec: By Minute Motion, award the City-wide palm tree trimming project to Vargas Tree Service in the amount of $8.50 per tree (estimated total - $7,000.00). K. REOUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT for City -Wide Bench Mark Leveling Network (Vertical Control), Contract No. C09980. Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to enter into a contract with Robert Rein, William Frost & Associates for the City-wide bench mark leveling network in the amount of $39,400.00 plus a ten percent contingency of $3,940.00 for a total contract amount of $43,340.00. L. REOUEST FOR EXTENSION of Landscape Maintenance Contract No. C07410. Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize a one-year extension for landscape maintenance on the Dinah Shore Median with Sir Michael's Enterprises in the amount of $1,575.00 ($131.25 per month). M. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT for Traffic Signal Modification on Fred Waring Drive at Phyllis Jackson Lane (Contract No. C09730). Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to enter into a contract for the subject project with Hovey Electric, Inc. in the amount of $9,780.00 and authorize a ten percent contingency in the amount of $978.00. N. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Notice of Completion for the Intersection Pavement Corrections at Portola Avenue North of Highway 111, Project No. 769-95 (Contract No. C09140). Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize the City Clerk to file a Notice of Completion for the Intersection Pavement Corrections at Portola Avenue north of Highway 111 (Contract No. C09140). 3 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MLr I, TG MAY 25, 1995 * * s* s s* s s s s * * * s* * s* s s *** s s * * * s s s s * s s s s O. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Riverside County Transportation Commission's Memorandum of Understanding for Highway 111 Improvements (Contract No. C09990). Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to execute the subject document. P. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of the Refund of Art Fees to Enjoy Development for Placement of Art. Rec: By Minute Motion, direct staff to refund $28,000.00 from past year reserves to Enjoy Development for placement of art and appropriate $28,000.00 from unobligated Art -In -Public -Places reserves. Q. REQUEST FORAPPROVAj of Corrected Minutes of the City Council Meeting of February 23, 1995. Rec: Approve as presented. Councilman Spiegel asked that Item I be removed for separate discussion under Consent Items Held Over. Mr. Erwin asked that Item P also be removed for separate discussion. Upon motion by Benson, second by Snyder, the Consent Calendar, with the exception of Items I and P, was approved as presented by unanimous vote of the Council. V. RESOLUTIONS None VI. ORDINANCES For Introduction: A. ORDINANCE NO. 775 - AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, ADDING CHAPTER 2.26 TO TITLE 2 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, ESTABLISHING THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY COMM,. i i r c (Continued from the Meetings of March 23 and April 27, 1995). Mr. Diaz noted that the ordinance now reflected changes requested by the Council. Councilman Spiegel stated that the bylaws had not been agreed to 100% and that the Council would be meeting with members of the Economic Development Advisory Committee. He recommended continuing this matter until after that meeting. 4 MINUTES _ _- - REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25,1995 * * * * s* * * * * * * s s s s *** * * s s s s s s* * s s * * * * s* s Councilman Snyder moved to continue this item until after the City Council meets with the Economic Development Advisory Committee. Motion was seconded by Spiegel and carried by unanimous vote. B. ORDINANCE NO. 779 - AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTION 10.36.010 OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE RELATIVE TO ESTABLISHING NEW SPEED ZONES (San Pascual Avenue between Alessandro Drive and Rutledge Way; Rutledge Way between San Pascual Avenue and Portola Avenue; Grapevine Street between Highway 74 and Ryway Place; Grapevine Street between Ryway Place and Portola Avenue). Mr. Holtz reviewed the staff report and offered to answer any questions. Upon question by Councilmember Benson relative to the difficulty in locating Ryway Place, Mr. Holtz responded that appropriate signage for those locations would be posted. Councilman Snyder moved to waive further reading and pass Ordinance No. IZ2 to second reading. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. For Adoption: None VII. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER I. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Right -of -Way Transverse Easement with Southern Pacific Railroad Company - Cook Street and I-10 Interchange (Contract No. C09970). Upon question by Councilman Spiegel, Mr. Folkers explained this item in more detail. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to enter into the Right -of - Way Transverse Easement with the Southern Pacific Railroad Company for crossing of the Railroad at the interchange at Interstate 10 and Cook Street, subject to some language changes to be approved by the City Attorney and City Manager. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. P. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of the Refund of Art Fees to Enjoy Development for Placement of Art. Mr. Erwin asked that this matter be continued to the meeting of June 8, 1995. Councilman Snyder moved to continue this matter to the meeting of June 8, 1995. Motion was seconded by Spiegel and carried by unanimous vote. 5 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr r, t 'PIG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * VIII. NEW BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF PROPOSED SALE OF PALM LAKES GOLF COURSE. Mr. Diaz reviewed the staff report, noting that a Parks and Recreation Subcommittee composed of himself, two members of the Parks and Recreation Commission, and Don Martin of the Coachella Valley Park and Recreation District had been established to look at this. He said it was believed there could be a good opportunity to acquire this facility and have it available to specific designated groups. He said Council's approval of the recommendation did not mean the facility would be acquired but was just direction to staff to look into the matter. Councilmember Benson asked whether this would include an appraisal of the I.- r...tJ. Mr. Diaz responded that an appraisal of the r.,,r ty could be done if Council wished. Councilman Kelly stated that this was also an opportunity of partnership with the Coachella Valley Park and Recreation District. Others that could also get involved would be Junior Golf and the Senior Center. Councilman Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion, instruct staff and the Parks and Recreation Commission to investigate the offer and return to Council with a complete report, said report to include potential users, programs, and revenue sources as well as long- and short-term potentials. Motion was seconded by Benson. Councilman Spiegel agreed with Councilmember Benson that the property should be appraised and asked why the current owner wished to sell. Mayor Crites asked that these issues be included in the motion. Councilmembers Kelly and Benson agreed to amend their motion and second. Motion carried by unanimous vote. B. REOUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF AQUATICS CENTER FEASIBILITY STUDY. Mr. Diaz reviewed the staff report, noting that the study would be undertaken by a firm that would be selected on the basis that they would not be involved in the construction, maintenance, or any other phase of the aquatics center should it be built. Councilman Spiegel noted that the report indicated the consultant would conduct a survey of the community in order to determine the need for this facility, and he said it was his understanding that a survey had been included in a recent City newsletter. Mr. Diaz responded that there was some concern that only those in favor actually responded to the newsletter survey. Staff, therefore, would attempt to do a more random survey to make sure that if we do go forward there will be a demand for this facility. 6 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr r i ii LTG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Upon question by Councilmember Benson, Mr. Diaz responded that the study would evaluate both indoor and outdoor facilities to examine construction costs as well as long-range maintenance differences between indoor and outdoor. It would also examine the desirability of both types. Councilmember Benson moved to, by Minute Motion, allocate un4f,r..,r.:ated reserves not to exceed $30,000 for the completion of a feasibility study for a community aquatics center and authorize the expenditure of these funds. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. C. CONSIDERATION OF REQUEST BY KLCX FOR APPROVAL TO USE A BALLOON FOR THE BULLOCK'S OPENING. Mr. Diaz reviewed the staff report and recommendation. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, approve the use of a KLCX balloon for the grand opening of Bullock's on May 27, 1995, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. D. BEOUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION SUPPORTING ALL OUTGOING MAIL BEING POSTMARKED "INLAND EMPIRE". Mr. Folkers noted the report in the packets and said staff saw no need to make changes at this time. Councilman Spiegel noted for the benefit of the audience that the Council had been asked by the City of Riverside to support changing the postmark on all outgoing mail to reflect "Inland Empire". Staffs recommendation was to deny the request at this time. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, direct staff to take no action on this matter at this time. Councilman Kelly seconded the motion on the basis that the City does not want to be identified as "Inland Empire" but would rather it be something like "Desert Region". Motion carried by unanimous vote. Councilman Spiegel also noted an article in today's Press Enterprise relative to the upcoming change in area codes with 619 being split and our area of the County having the opportunity to be the first 700 area code, with 619 staying in San Diego. He asked that staff look into whether this is something that is sealed in concrete or whether it would be possible for this area to keep the 619 area code and the San Diego area to have the 700 area code instead. Council concurred. 7 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mi r iiimv MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * s s s s * s s * * * * * s s * * s s s s s s s s s s * s s s s • 4• E. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS: 1. Bid for Civic Center Roof Repairs. Mr. Holtz stated that no bids had been received for this project for the bid opening scheduled for May 15th. Staff was recommending authorization to readvertise the project. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize staff to readvertise and call for bids for roof repairs to the Civic Center buildings. Motion was seconded by Snyder and carried by unanimous vote. 2. Position Paper Relative to Solid Waste and Recycling Contract Options and Mandatory Collection Issues. This item was held and considered along with Continued Business Item B. 3. Update on Interchanges. Mr. Folkers distributed a staff report relative to awarding a construction management contract for the Interstate 10 interchanges at Cook Street and at Monterey Avenue and asked that this matter be added to the Agenda. Councilman Kelly moved to add this matter to the Agenda. Motion was seconded by Spiegel and carried by unanimous vote. Upon question by Councilman Spiegel as to why this was not done by closed bid, Mr. Folkers responded that RFQ's are sent out for professional projects. He added that staff wanted for this project a firm with expertise on building multiple interchanges. Councilman Spiegel asked if other agencies were participating in payment for the project, and Mr. Folkers responded that payment would be 50% from CVAG, 25% from SB300 funds, and 25% local. Councilmember Benson asked if there was a way to limit the number of change orders that will be coming in for this project, and Mr. Folkers stated that staff's intention was not to go into contingency at all. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize the City Manager and Mayor to enter negotiations and award Contract No. C10010 to Centennial Engineering, Inc. of Irvine, California, in the approximate amount of $2,186,200 plus a contingency of ten percent for the construction management of the two interchanges at Cook Street and at Monterey Avenue. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. 8 REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL NILE.'nUG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 4. Bermuda Dunes Annexation. Mr. Diaz noted the report in the packets and offered to answer any questions. Councilman Spiegel asked if it would make sense to get a stronger sense from the residents of Bermuda Dunes as to whether they want to come into the City. Mr. Diaz responded that that may be one of the issues which staff would want to discuss with the Community Council. Councilmember Benson stated that another issue that might want to be discussed is the County's community of interest that we put in a few years ago that Bermuda Dunes would qualify for if they wanted to apply for that. She said there had never been any mention that the residents even know they have that option. Mr. Diaz responded that this could be discussed also. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, direct the Annexation Committee to meet with members of the Bermuda Dunes Community Council to discuss the process and identify potential areas of mutual interest and concern. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. IX. CONTINUED BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF APPEALS TO A DECISION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMHIISSION GRANTING PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF REVISED HOME PLANS WITHIN THE TIERRA VISTA DEVELOPMENT ON THE WEST SIDE OF ELDORADO DRIVE, SOUTH OF THE LAKES, Case No. 1T25711, Robert B. Varner - Sunterrace, and Mr. and Mrs. Norman Aron, Appellants (Continued from the Meeting of May 25, 1995). Mr. Diaz stated that this item had been continued to allow the appellants to meet with the developer. The meeting was held, but no agreement was reached. The developer had indicated willingness to increase the house size to a minimum of 2,520 square feet. However, the opposition in the area for the most part would be willing to agree on a small size home of 2,680 square feet. This square footage could be achieved by 1) having the optional guest house always built as part of the smaller unit, or 2) enlarging the smaller unit to 2,680 square feet. MR. BRUCE MAIZE, representing Desert Aggregates, gave a brief overview of the meetings held, noting that the homeowners' compromise at the first meeting was that they be bought out, and that was not a viable alternative for the developer. The homeowners came in to the second meeting with an alternative that the guest house be included in the smaller home. He noted that Mr. Varner, in a telephone conversation, offered the same compromise position as the homeowners; however, the developer did not find this offer acceptable. He said that something that seems to be consistently overlooked in the discussions is the size of the surrounding homes in the area. He distributed and reviewed and area overview of home sizes 9 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL 1Vir.G i ai+1G MAY 2S, 199S * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * (on file and of record in the City Clerk's Office), noting that there was one house that had been built in the existing Sierranova project that was larger than what he was proposing, and he felt the proposed Tierravista homes were not out of line in this area of homes. With regard to the homeowners in Tierravista, he said this was not a case of taking advantage of unaware homeowners. The homeowners who are there had been apprised of what is being done. He said that Mr. Aron was apprised very early when Granite was taking over the project what their intentions were and what the likelihood was of the project being downsizod. He added that during the early negotiations on this project, Mr. Aron had personally indicated to him that he and his wife were ready to sign off on a change in the CC&R's that represented a 2,200 square foot home. He also noted that the homes had been sold on an as - is basis, and it was clearly understood that they were being sold at a "distressed" price and that the likelihood of the developer continuing building that project was very remote. With regard to the compromise submitted and the reason for the developers nonacceptance, he noted that the reason for the compromise, as had been explained to him, was the result of testimony at the May l lth meeting where the appellants and supporters claimed the proposed project would adversely affect the value of their homes. He did not feel this was a valid claim. He said the size of the homes had been in.,.,.r.,.ated with features that are very sensitive to the homeowners. The original submission to the Architectural Review Commission was 2,400 square feet; the developer had voluntarily raised it to 2,480 square feet and was now willing to raise it to 2,520 square feet. He disagreed with including a guest house for the smaller home as a standard instead of having it as an option. He said the compromise offer would create a product mix of 2,662 square feet, 2,760 square feet, and 2,912 square feet, resulting in little square footage distinction between the smaller two plans. He added that the developer's compromise offer was made in the spirit of cooperation and in the context of compromises made before they ever got to the Architectural Review Commission and the City Council. He noted that the compromise offer was made reluctantly because it compromised what they wanted to accomplish with the project. He said the argument that the size of the homes would hurt property values had not been and could not be validated. MR. DENNIS CUNNINGHAM, 45-420 Desert Fox Drive, La Quinta, spoke in favor of the project as planned. He said it had been thoroughly screened and worked with by the Architectural Review Commission to ensure its place within the community. Square footages were compatible with the surrounding area, and he felt the compatibility issue was weighted unfairly toward the homeowners at the expense of the developer. MR. BOB VARNER, developer of Sunterrace, disagreed with Mr. Maize's comment that the original submission was 2,400 square feet. He said they actually started at 2,429 square feet. He said he had never seen their plans although he had seen renderings of floor plans. He said he had spoken with Mr. Maize the Tuesday after the last Council meeting and had given him his low figure. Mr. Maize had indicated he would call back but did not. He said he had spoken with Mr. Aron who indicated they would be meeting on Friday and asked him to 10 DES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25,1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * attend. When he called Mr. Maize and asked if he would attend the meeting, he said he was told he could not and that Mr. Maize wanted to talk to the Sierranova people. Mr. Aron went to the meeting and suggested the 2,400 square foot home with 280 square foot guest home. Mr. Maize did call back on Tuesday and indicated they were not interested in the compromise offered by the homeowners. He said he felt the homeowners bargained in good faith but that Mr. Maize did not. MR. TOM NOBLE, 12 Covington, Palm Desert, project manager of the Montecito development, said their CC&R's had a 2,200 square foot minimum house size, and they had homes ranging from $330,000 to $600,000 and had no problems with compatibility. He said he had gone by Mr. Maize's office earlier that day to see the homes he had designed, and he felt they were tremendous plans and that it was a good project. MR. NORMAN ARON addressed Council and said he felt there was a big demand these days for the detached room to be used for home offices, etc. Including that guest house instead of having it as an option meant the owner would not have to go back and redesign anything. All design work in the three models would remain the same. The only difference would be that in the smaller unit the guest house would be included; it would be an option in the other two plans. MR. MIKE MARIX, 48-295 Alder Lane, said he felt this was a marketing issue best settled by the public in making their choices. He said he supported the proposal as offered by Mr. Maize. MR. GAYLE ANDERSON, 91 Appian Way, stated that he had met with Mr. Maize who had indicated he would provide him with a market study or an appraisal of the project projecting the valuation impact if the smaller units were built. He said he had not received that. He said his second concern was the notice that was sent to the State of California Department of Real Estate. He said in this language in which Mr. Maize summarized some of the changes to the CC&R's one of them was that the requested change was in direct response to the changed economic conditions in the market... the market trends and studies both indicate that the homes must be reduced in size in order to have a reasonable number of sales. He said Mr. Maize had never presented anyone with any market study or research or anything that would prove his point. He said the report also indicated that Desert Aggregates would employ every reasonable means to lessen any adverse impact on existing homes such as clustering larger homes near the existing homes to maintain a consistent streetscape. He said he did not hear one word about them building larger homes next to his home or his neighbor's home which are 3,400 and 3,700 square feet. He said if this is what Desert Aggregates is proposing to the Department of Real Estate, they should be consistent and make that proposal to the City Council. He also added that the report stated the minimum size of the residences would be reduced to 2,200 square feet from 3,000 square feet. MR. ED KIBBEY, Building Industry Association, Desert Chapter, stated he was neither for nor against but was speaking to this matter as it affects the industry. He said when a builder 11 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT C1TY COUNCIL Mr.Li,iiG MAY 25, 1995 s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s$ s s s s s s s s s s s s takes on a project, that builder puts forth millions of dollars out front before they get any return. They study the project, the neighborhood, and the city to discover what is required by the market. He said he felt it was unfair to the industry to allow one or two people to come and say a project cannot be built because it does not make sense. With regard to the surrounding area, he said he was led to believe that there are walls around this and that it is a separate community. Whatever Council's decision, he asked that consideration be given to the fact that a reputable builder has come to the community and put money on the line to build something he is proud of. MS. TIFFANY FAIRFIELD, 41-110. Carlotta Drive, Primrose development, spoke in favor of the development. She stated that she backed up to that proposed development and was in favor of the project as far as the square footage, prices, etc. She said she felt this project was a lot more affordable than putting something else in there that would be much more high end and would take a lot longer to sell. MR. RANDY COLTER, 41-195 Carlotta Drive, said he felt these were very nice homes that fit in with the neighborhood. He also felt the project would help the I..values for the Primrose homes. Councilman Spiegel stated that Mr. Maize had gone before the Architectural Review Commission and had subsequently gone back and redone the outside of the homes to make them more compatible with the neighboring homes. The Architectural Review Commission then signed off on the project. Mr. Varner and adjacent r.„r;,.lf owners then came to the City and talked about the size of the homes. He noted that Mr. Varner's project started at 2,680 square feet, and the Sierranova homes started at 2,429 square feet. He said he understood Council's direction was for the r..1, ...11 owners and the developer to get together and work this out; from what he had seen, this had not been done. He noted that the Desert Sun earlier this week indicated that new home sales were down. He said he would like to see the two groups compromise and that 125 square feet be added to the smaller Sierranova home, but if that cannot be done, he would agree to go with the project as proposed. Councilmember Benson said she would like to see more of a compromise; however, she had gone out and looked at these and felt what was proposed was compatible. She said she would like to see the difference between the 2,680 square feet and the 2,520 square feet split and let the developer get on with the project. Councilman Snyder said he had hoped compromise could be reached. If the developer would increase the smaller home to 2,520, he felt this was a step in the right direction. He said he would like to see this settled and the project moved along. Councilman Kelly said he felt care needed to be taken in comparing this project with The Lakes Indian Ridge which were very different types of projects. He said his understanding was that the homes at the top were the ones that sell, and the ones on the bottom were more difficult. 12 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Nizz i wiG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Mayor Crites said he could not tell from the outside of a home whether or not it has an additiona1 80 feet. He said in looking at the map of Sierranova, there had been no complaints from anyone at The Lakes, Indian Ridge, Sandcastle, and Primrose. He said there had been complaints with some legitimacy from people to the south at Sunterrace and from current residents of Sierranova. He suggested taking the southerly two ranks of houses as shown on the lot map (i.e., lots 59, 27, etc.) and restricting them to the top two plans. That way anything adjacent to Sunterrace would fit the minimum house size for that project. He said he felt Mr. Aron had a legitimate issue when discussing where he is, and he felt the same type of restriction should be made for the existing homes on the lots directly adjacent to them. Councilman Kelly said he felt this suggestion had some merit and asked if staff should be directed to sit down with the developer to determine which lots would be affected. Mayor Crites said he felt staff could be directed to forward in that direction and I a resolution. Councilmember Benson asked if this would mean that the smallest of the homes would still have the optional guest house, and Mayor Crites responded that it would. Councilmember Benson agreed with the suggestion. Councilman Kelly said he liked this suggestion because the home sizes are not being changed but instead locations are being rearranged so they have the least impact on adjacent homes. Mr. Maize asked whether this would be approving the floor plans for the smaller homes as originally submitted at 2,480 square feet. Mayor Crites responded that it would be the three plans at 2,520 square feet, 2,662 square feet, and 2,912 square feet. Mr. Maize clarified that the guest house would still remain as an option, and Mayor Crites agreed. Mr. Maize said he appreciated the Council's effort at trying to come up with a resolution that makes sense. However, he said he had previously made a concession to Mr. Aron that the larger homes would be built around his home. He said the last phase of the project was around the existing project, and that same concession could be incorporated here. He said his only problem with the proposal as suggested by Mayor Crites was that the property adjacent to the Mr. Varner's Sunterrace project (Sandcastle) had substantially smaller size home than what he was going to build. He said there was a fully improved street between the Tierravista project and Mr. Varner's project with six-foot high block walls. He suggested that in that compromise position that the lots to the south be addressed but incorporate those lots across the street is inappropriate. Councilman Spiegel moved to direct staff to r. era... a resolution on this matter, with the square footages talked about during this Council meeting, and look at the issues of adjacency and of the southern border in terms of restricting those to the larger plot plans. Motion was seconded by Benson and carried by unanimous vote. 13 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL11,4v.x.imisty MAY 2S, 199S * * s s * * * s s s s * * * * * * * * * * s s s s s s s * s s s s * s s s* With Council concurrence, Mayor Crites recessed the meeting for five minutes at 5:40 p.m. B. REQUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF EXCLUSIVE FRANCHISE CONTRACT TO PERFORM SOLID WASTE AND RESIDENTIAL RECYCLING SERVICES (Continued from the Meeting of May 11, 1995). PLEASE SEE VERBATIM TRANSCRIPT OF THIS ITEM ATTACHED HERETO AND MADE A PART HEREOF AS EXHIBIT A. . Councilman Kelly moved to, by Mlnute Motion: 1) Approve the negotiated franchise agreement with Waste Management of the Desert for provision of solid waste and residential recycling collection for the next five years; 2) direct staff to prepare a final contract document between Waste Management of the Desert and the City of Palm Desert (Contract No. C09630). Motion was seconded by Spiegel and carried by a 4-1 vote, with Councilmember Benson voting NO. With Council concurrence, Mayor Crites recessed the meeting for ten minutes at 8:30 p.m. X . OLD BUSINESS A. CONSIDERATION OF REQUEST FROM PEARL HARBOR SURVIVORS ASSOCIATION FOR APPROVAL OF CITY'S SHARE OF FUNDING IN THE AMOUNT OF $5,000 FOR PRODUCTION OF A VCR FILM. Mr. Folkers noted the report in the packets. Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize payment of $5,000 to Pearl Harbor Survivors Association and appropriate $5,000 from the General Fund unobligated reserves. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. XI. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. CITY MANAGER Mr. Folkers expressed appreciation to Mr. Ortega, his staff, and City staff for their assistance while the City Manager is on leave. He said he was proud of the team we have. B. CITY ATTORNEY Mr. Erwin asked that an item be added for Closed Session pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(b), Threatened Litigation, based on a telephone call he received earlier that day from an attorney. Councilman Spiegel moved to add this item to the Agenda for discussion in Closed Session. Motion was seconded by Snyder and carried by unanimous vote. 14 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mrr. ' si G MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * C. CITY CLERK 1. Report on Art -In -Public -Places Presentation by Catherine Sass to the City of San Luis Obispo. Ms. Frazier noted the report in the packets from City Clerk Sheila Gilligan and offered to answer any questions. 2. Ms. Frazier reminded the Council that it needed to adjourn this meeting to 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 7, 1995, for the purpose of discussing two items: 1) Odekirk claim continued from the meeting of May 11, 1995; 2) Resolution of Necessity for acquisition of tj for the Cook Street Interchange. D. MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL o City Council Requests for Action; 1. Consideration of Letter from United States Senator Dianne Feinstein Requesting Endorsement of Legislation to Address the Problem of Illegal Immigration (Mayor Buford A. Crites). Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, direct that no action be taken on this item. Motion was seconded by Snyder and carried by unanimous vote. 2. Councilmember Benson expressed concern with restaurants putting tables and chairs outside their establishments. She said they start out with three or four tables, and soon there are eight or ten. She asked staff to look into this. 3. Councilmember Benson stated that there was going to be a conference in Long Beach in August relative to Economic Development — how it works and what it is. She felt that perhaps a staff member and a member of the Economic Development Advisory Committee should go. 4. Councilman Spiegel asked that staff take a look at the restaurant code as it applies to dance halls, which Palm Desert is beginning to have. He said as he understood it, the restaurant code applies to dance halls, and if someone comes in and takes over a restaurant, they can make it a dance hall. Ile asked that the hours of operation and number of parking spaces also be looked at. 5. Councilman Kelly reported on the recent trip he and Mr. Ortega took to meet with a developer interested in the City's North Sphere. He said they went to Vancouver and looked at a resort that is like our time shares, with ski lifts, golf course, and a village. It is worked out where people have points that can 15 MINUTFS REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mir e.YuLTG MAY 25, 1995 * • * • • • * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * be used anywhere in their operation. He said he felt the rest of the Councilmembers should go and look at this also. 6. Mayor Crites stated that at the last CVAG Executive Committee meeting was a report from Ernest & Young on their initial look at the CVAG transportation . e.(.m, TUMF, Measure A, SB300, etc. He asked that staff at the next Council meeting provide a written report on this and said he felt this had some real potential long-term issues for the City of Palm Desert. 7. Mayor Crites t., J that another item on the last CVAG Executive Committee Agenda was the City of Cathedral City asking CVAG to get involved in recommending to the County of Riverside that an Environmental Impact Report be done for the auto mall area. He said there was no second to that motion to do that. He said if the Council as individuals wished to make comments about the auto mall or about the need for an EIR, then it should be done as individuals. Councilman Spiegel asked whether it was important for the Council to come out in support of no EIR. Mayor Crites responded that his opinion was that we are best served by allowing this process to go forward to whatever conclusion it reaches. 8. Mayor Crites asked that staff look into presenting an award to Mr. Fred Tretta in recognition of his efforts on behalf of the City of Palm Desert with regard to SpringFest '95. Councilman Spiegel asked that Mr. John Marman also be recognized for his service on the City's Parks and Recreation Commission. o City Council Committee Reports: None XII. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - B None With Council concurrence, Mayor Crites recessed the meeting at 7:10 p.m. for dinner. He reconvened the meeting at 7:45 p.m. XIII. COMPLETION OF ITEMS HELD OVER FROM 4:00 P.M. SESSION None 16 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * s* s **« s s s s s s« s«« s s s« s s s«« s«« s«««« **«« XIV. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - C None XV. AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS NOTE: THE FOLLOWING TWO ITEMS WERE LISTED ON AN AGENDA ADDENDUM POSTED ON MONDAY, MAY 22, 1995. A. CONSIDERATION OF APPOINTMENTS TO THE CAL STATE PALM DESERT MASTER PLAN ADVISORY COMM t i Mayor Crites noted that Councilman Spiegel had volunteered to serve on this committee as well as Community Development Director Ray Diaz. He said he had also spoken with Mr. Dave Tschopp, President of First Bank, who had agreed to serve. Councilman Kelly moved to appoint Councilman Spiegel, Director of Community Development Ramon Diaz, and Dave Tschopp, President of First Bank, to serve on the Cat State Palm Desert Master Plan Advisory Committee. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. Mayor Crites noted that these appointments would leave one vacancy, and he felt it should be filled by someone from the north sphere area of the City. B. CONSIDERATION OF CITY REPRESENTATION FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS PLANNING FOR THE SANTA ROSA MOUNTAINS NATIONAL SCENIC AREA VISITOR CENTER. Mayor Crites stated that the request was that someone from the City's advertising agency work with this group to plan the grand opening of the Visitor Center. Councilman Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion, approve this request and ask that the City's advertising agency work with this group to plan the grand opening of the Visitor Center. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. 17 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL 112ire,iunv MAY 25, 1995 s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s *** s s s s s s* s s * s s s s s it s s s XVI. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. REQUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF AN APPEAL OF A PLANNING COMMISSION DECISION APPROVING A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT AND NEGATIVE DECLARATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT FOR A 6,000 SQUARE FOOT RESTAURANT WITH 1,350 SQUARE FOOT OUTDOOR DINING PATIO AND FULL LIQUOR LICENSE WITHIN AN EXISTING COMMERCIAL BUILDING, AND DEVELOPMENT OF A PARKING LOT LOCATED AT THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF EL PASEO AND HIGHWAY 74, Case No. 95-2 (Churchill Management, Applicant), Continued from the Meetings of April 13 and May 25, 1995. Mr. Diaz noted that this had been continued to allow the applicant to work with the Redevelopment Agency to put together an agreement relative to financial aspects of the project. Another issue was valet parking and how that was to operate. He noted that staff recommended that Council affirm the decision of the Planning Commission and approve the project. MR. FRED FERN, developer, stated that the proposal was to change the existing bank building into a restaurant, correct the roadway that is an eyesore currently, and make this a positive entrance into Palm Desert. He noted that two weeks ago they proposed adding 55 new parking spaces which would leave the project 16 spaces short. After looking at possible alternatives, they were essentially coming back with the same proposal as last time that cars would be picked up close to the corner in front of the restaurant and taken across Highway 74, with a u-turn approximately 500 yards down on El Paseo and then coming back along the front of the building into the back parking lot. Upon question by Councilman Kelly, Mr. Fern responded that they were not opposed to having the valet at the back of the restaurant; however, they felt the plan as submitted was the best alternative and would eliminate cars backing into other cars as they go through the parking lot. Councilman Kelly stated he was opposed to the valet going across the street to park and would prefer that it be located at the back of the restaurant. MR. DAVID FLETCHER stated that they had looked at the possibility of having valet parking in the back and that there were several down sides to doing that versus traveling through the intersection. He said to create a valet pickup area would eliminate four or five parking spaces. In addition, the Palomino restaurant had requested that they not put valet parking in the back. He said another concern with valet parking is that, as in the case of The Daily Grill restaurant, people feel obligated to use the valet. Upon question by Mayor Crites, Mr. Fern responded that they would be prepared to accept the Council's decision if it were to require that the valet parking be located at the back of the restaurant. 18 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Mayor Crites addressed Mr. Fletcher's comments and said he felt the point was well taken about the possibility of people backing into other vehicles in the parking lot; however, he felt this would be better than getting hit by a vehicle turning left on Highway 74. Councilmember Benson stated she would not vote for anything that would make the valet go across Highway 74. She also expressed concern with having two valet companies in the same lot (for Palomino and for this restaurant) and the possibility of having the cars stacked up and keeping people from getting to their vehicles. She suggested having a central valet place for everyone to use. Mr. Fletcher responded that he was confident they could work with Palomino and the City's Technical Traffic Committee to come up with something that would work out. Mr. Fern added that Palomino already had a valet company and that he believed something could be worked out with them to centralize the valet parking for everyone. Councilmember Benson stated she felt there should be something in writing that under no circumstances will they be allowed to cross Highway 74. Mayor Crites stated that they would have to come in for approval to do something other than what is approved here. Mr. Fletcher asked if it would be necessary to come back to Council if they take the cars across El Paseo to Ocotillo. Mayor Crites responded that there needed to be a provision that says if it is successful and everyone is doing a good business and the lot is full, overflow valet cars may go across El Paseo to the lot behind Club 74 by Ocotillo via the four-way stop sign. He said the issues as he saw them were as follows: Valet parking must be from the rear of the building. The applicant will investigate the feasibility and desirability of a central valet for the three restaurants to see whether that works. The area on the same side of El Paseo behind Tony Roma's will be the first preference for valet parking; however, overflow will be allowed to go through the Ocotillo/El Paseo intersection to the lot location on the south side of the Daily Grill/Club 74 building. Mayor Crites asked if the applicant was still willing to do what was discussed several weeks ago and make sure that employees have the option of valet parking, especially women employees. Mr. Fern responded that they intended to do that and that the employee parking problems was something they were working on. The attorney for Palomino stated they had not thought in terms of having the parking on the north side. He said from his client's r .� �r �„t�ve having a central valet would be very important not only from the idea of moving vehicles but in moving them safely. 19 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr.r.. i u+1G MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * • * * * * * * * * * * * * * * • * * Upon question by Mayor Crites, Mr. Ortega reviewed the staff report relative to the agreement with Churchill Management Group to provide for parking improvements. Mayor Crites asked whether this project would generate art -in -public -places fees, and Mr. Ortega responded that it would. Mayor Crites said he felt something needed to be done with the landscaping for the area along Highway 74 by the Shell Station. Councilmember Benson agreed and said it should not be a monument sign. Mayor Crites asked that the applicant hire a professional arborist to trim the sycamore trees at the bank building the next time they need trimming so they will once again be beautiful. Mr. Fern agreed. With no further testimony offered, Mayor Crites declared the public hearing clostd. Councilman Spiegel moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 95-29 affirming Planning Commission decision approving CUP 95-2 amended to reflect revised parking lot design and requiring applicant to make available 50 spaces in the El Paseo Collection (south) lot served by a valet parking program operational from El Paseo, as amended to modify Condition #6 of the Community Development Department to include the five or six points made during the public hearing relative to valet parking and issues of landscaping and art. Motion was seconded by Snyder and carried by unanimous vote. B. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF A GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENT AND CHANGE OF ZONE FROM PLANNED RESIDENTIAL AND RESORT COMMERCIAL TO DISTRICT COMMERCIAL (PC-2) AND APPROVAL OF A PRECISE PLAN OF DESIGN TO PERMIT CONSTRUCTION OF AN 81,747 SQUARE FOOT RETAIL SHOPPING CENTER ON 8.7 ACRES AT THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF DEEP CANYON ROAD AND HIGHWAY 111, Case Nos. GPA94-2. C/Z 94-3. PP 94-7 (F & M Associates, Applicant) Continued from the Meetings of April 27 and May 25, 1995. Mayor Crites noted that Council had received a request for continuance of this hearing until June 8, 1995. Councilman Snyder moved to continue this matter to June 8, 1995. Motion was seconded by Benson and carried by unanimous vote. XVII. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - D None r.. 20 MINUTES • REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr riu1G MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * s.s * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * s* * * * * * * * s* * XVIII. ADJOURNMENT Councilman Spiegel moved to adjourn the meeting to Closed Session at 9:35 p.m. for purposes listed under City Attorney Reports and Remarks. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by unanimous vote. Mayor Crites reconvened the meeting at 10:30 p.m. and immediately adjourned to 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 7, 1995, with no action announced from Closed Session. ATTEST: MARY P. ZIER, DEPU(I/Y CITY CLERK CITY OF P M DESERT, CALIFORNIA BUFORD A. CRITES, MAYOR 21 ZZ `gaoads Bug:twit wars 3Ea1S a ;o ajppitu a p ut s,auoawos , os `inoq ;ley e io; dots 03 2uwo8 ale aM ` emq E Mre3 dj dOIS r(jjeuuou aM uEg3 Jam lnoq uE si gaigM `(yp:L le Suiop aa,aM 3e4M mew oN •luawaaunouue Suinnojjo; alp a>tew o3 sanSeajjoa Atu 4(q paiapio uaaq aim I 'Awn alp Ai •sup uo Suojeads aq jjim `1aSEUEW uopenlasuo3 je3uaumannU3 1n0 `apuEjsuo3 Esrl `1o4ENj '1Nj DWI dRI •1a33Ew Sng uO 31Oda1 alp 10; HMS 3 jSE pjno% I pte `saawas Suga4Cau jepuapisai pue alseM pgos ;o aauewloj1ad 1Oj 33E.131100 asigauej anlsnjaYa uE 3o uorElaptsuoa 10j 3sanba1 V - g wan ssauisng panupuo01o; Apea1 ale aM DWI �j1aj� CIO 4f3ntc `12tzeid 'd k eNj ddNI luawdojanapag;o 1o2aaKultod Valk) •-I sOj1 3 O'ID sau3snpUl a3sem ulIISOM `UEW13O.41 wit Hi =loom beg NO s3132Nt !PMOZ Mi UMOJg LUMEN fNj fl uelD uuk1 AUC"I sagisnpul a3seM ula3saM `sauo f 3U1 f7 31asaQ ay) ;o luawa2EUENj a3sEM `wing puow4(eg gg 11asaQ alp ;0 3uawaSEueW a3SM `iCzeJONi qiogoa NIQ io3Eutpioo0 SuRPAaag 3uaw22EuEN a3seM `j12112Mll AWN NISI 312S Q alp ;O 3uawa&uENj alsem `wapuald uoisIAIQ `ajjinlawwos BEd Sd uewWlotD 'd wgElgd Jdd rap4us -H 1a3lEM u!wjtauno3 SHM d find dd ddox uaajg3ex xx tpnwjt4OM Rot' 'Dina auuetI dQ ItaddEqo swtu xQ S13M0d IITH dg I10113S vacioUS2I (mpg uuo sly uo Suijeads) oipul ;o AID aq3 ;o 1o4(eyj `lunH wo j H.L 4(IPx 'S PRIM uew1iauno0 )1S1I uosUag *pi UEa f lagwawj ouno3 gji�If PPBatdS •V WWII UEWjiauno3 SVII 11SEUENj uop!NasuoO jeluckuuanAua `apuemsuo0 esrl 3'I raSeuENj 43i3 guppy 'wawa ' f P'I°RI dt2I S 3U3 'V P1ojnI 1o4RNj ova NV* J.I81HX3 S66T `SZ AVW `JNLL 3W "ILIAIf1OD AJJD ,LlIIS3Q WIVJ ?IVrmOI�I r MINIM MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * they'll get a few minutes to rest before they finish it, so just to let everybody know up front. And I assume, Lisa, you won't still be speaking at 7:00. LC Ten minutes. BAC Thank you. LC Ten minutes. I timed it. Could we just have the lights, if someone could help me. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. The following is about a ten-minute slide presentation providing a five-year -yr.,.L ve on the City of Palm Desert's solid waste negotiations. The presentation will bring negotiations right up to this minute. The historical aspects of our solid waste contract is...on December 14, 1989, staff brought a negotiated franchise agreement with Waste Mangement of the Desert for trash collection/recycling to the City Council for review and consideration. Council directed staff to .,r Requests for Proposal to evaluate other companies. Western Waste Industries was the sole company to respond... BAC Could you pull the mike down just a touch towards you? LC Oh... BAC Thank you. LC Western Waste Industries was the sole company to respond to the RFP in 1990. Western Waste's proposal was merited against that of Waste Management of the Desert's. Waste Management's proposal was found to be superior. The terms of the proposal from Waste Management of the Desert and Western Waste Industries were similar, except for four key points. Western Waste Industries proposed annual increases in the contract equivalent to 100% of the consumer price index, or CPI, tax roll billing, the term of the contract was to be an evergreen, and residents would bear the cost of the introduction of semi -automated containers. By comparison, the agreement negotiated with Waste Management of the Desert included an annual increase equal to just 50% of the CPI, residential recycling at no additional charge, and the construction of a recycling processing center in Palm Desert. On March 1, 1990, Council approve a five-year contract with the provision for a five-year extension to be negotiated in good faith with Waste Management of the Desert. This contract launched the first curbside recycling program in San Bernardino, Riverside, and Imperial counties. The terms of the contract were appropriate for both parties. Palm Desert received residential curbside recycling at no additional cost. The additional five years to be negotiated in good faith was included in the contract because the City new that Waste Management of the Desert would incur substantial expense in the construction of a processing facility. That processing facility today processes on an average over 800 tons of recyclables monthly and over 9,600 tons of recyclable materials processed annually from the Cities of Palm Desert, La Quinta, Indian Wells, Rancho Mirage, Cathedral City, and a portion of recyclables collected from the Cities of Palm Springs and Desert Hot Springs. 113 employees at Waste Management of the Desert support that facility. That facility recycles aluminum, glass, tin, plastic, 23 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MAY 25,1995 « « * * * * * « « « «•« « * * * * « « * * « « « * * « « « * * * « * * * « * r Aiiibii NAN cardboard, newspaper, and office paper. However, the recycling center was not just designed for big trucks bringing in tons of materials at one dump. It's also a buy-back center conveniently located where Palm Desert and Coachella Valley residents can receive money for their recyclable materials. Current contract negotiations with Waste Management of the Desert began on September 9, 1994. After five months of good faith negotiations, on February 23rd staff presented to City Council Waste Mangement of the Desert's proposal for enhancement of our residential curbside recycling program, introduction of a residential automated trash collection system to approximately 5,600 single-family homes, introduction of a variable rate structure for automated trash collection, a residential green waste collection program, and the establishment of a permanent green waste facility in the Coachella Valley to process the material. Council directed staff to prepare an agreement with Waste Management of the Desert approving in concept each of these enhancements to the City's existing , , . 6.am, and each will improve residential trash and recycling services significantly. First, residential curbside recycling, the current collection system, three stacked crates, will be phased out and graduated into a -two-crate system. When crates are stolen, lost, etc., replacement will be 14-gallon boxes with labeling describing the program and the materials accepted. The amount of materials accepted for recycling will be greatly enhanced, including all plastics, household containers such as shampoo bottles, detergents, not just soda and milk containers anymore. Residents will also be able to recycle film plastics, such as grocery store shopping bags. Magazines and catalogs will now be recyclable, along with paper of all grades including junk mail, cardboard, including egg cartons, telephone books, aerosol cans, wire coat hangers will now be acceptable and recycled instead of landfilled. The second major enhancement to Palm Desert's trash and recycling program will be the introduction of residential automated trash collection systems with a variable rate structure. Currently trash in Palm Desert is collected manually, either from the back yard or from the curbside. With a manual collection, it doesn't matter how little or how much — everyone pays the exact same amount for trash collection. In an automated system, you are able to differentiate how much neighbors pay for trash collection by volume. This new automated trash collection program lets residents pick three different size of containers so you pay for what you throw away. The smaller the container you use, the less your trash bill. In an automated trash collection system, a truck with a mechanical arm lifts containers up from the curb and empties the contents into the truck without the driver ever leaving the cab. Savings of an automated trash collection program are passed directly to residents who take advantage of service options. We will present an overhead of the rate structure immediately following the slide presentation. A great option of this new program is that it includes green waste recycling. Residents can choose to subscribe to a green waste container, and the container will be collected and processed locally into compost to be sold to both commercial and residential customers. As part of their contract, Waste Mangement of the Desert will successfully site a permanent local compost facility in the Coachella Valley and, in partnership with California Bio-mass, will have the facility open and operating by September 1, 1995. The site will be located at 62nd Avenue and Jackson Street just outside of Indio in the eastern portion of our valley. The site will consist of 76.2 acres. 15 acres will be dedicated for composting, and the remaining farm acreage will be used for agriculture and horticulture research 24 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MAY 25, 1995 * s* * s * * s s s s s* s s s s * s* * s* * s s s * * s s s s * s s s s r..l 1W1I "A" regarding composting and vermiculture. The intent is for this site to be a major research facility in the Coachella Valley and Riverside County farmers with the support of the University of Riverside. The facility will also provide tours and workshops for Coachella Valley schools. Currently, California Bio-mass owns and operates a very successful green waste recycling facility in Bloomington in San Bernardino County. The company has been operating in Bloomington for over four years. In its over four years of operation, California Bio-mass has never been cited for a violation, and more poignant to the Coachella Valley, the facility has never experienced a fire except within the first three weeks of its opening. Its perimeter was not completely secured, and neighborhood children lit a pile on fire, and it was extinguished within one hour. California Bio- mass is one of the first facilities in the Nation to use a new process for curing compost —in-vessel composting. This piece of equipment is called an ag-bag, ag as in agriculture. Fresh green waste is loaded onto this conveyor belt, the conveyor belt feeds the green waste into a very large plastic bag. The plastic bag is called a vessel. The green waste cures within the vessel for approximately ten weeks before it's ready for harvest. Mr. Dave Hardy, who is one of the owners of California Bio-Mass is here this evening if the City Council has any questions for him, and he can speak much more technically and eloquently on his company than I'm able to. In addition to enhanced recycling and automated trash collection program with a variable rate structure and a siting of a local green waste facility, the new contract will require Waste Management of the Desert to conduct two curbside bulky item collections annually and an annual collection of Christmas trees at the curbside and dropoff locations for multi -family dwellings. Waste Management will fund $25,000 annually for Arbor Day. Waste Management will also fund $1,000 annually to the new Multi -Agency Library to fund an environmental conservation section. Waste Mangement will also provide unlimited rolloff bin service and operational assistance free of charge when the City conducts desert cleanups in response to illegal dumping within the City limits. Right now probably the single most notable fleet of vehicles in the Valley are Sunline's buses. Sunline is the only 100% CNG fleet in the Nation. The most recognizable and looked -at bus of Sunline's CNG fleet is probably their new bus advertising The Living Desert. Kids and adults love it. Probably the second most notable vehicles in the Valley belong to Waste Management of the Desert. Waste Management of North America submitted a successful proposal to the South Coast Air Quality Management District for the conversion of 14 trash trucks to Compressed Natural Gas, or CNG. AB2766 funding $850,000 for the repowering and converting of these clean engines, and Waste Management of North America committed $1,100,000 to the project for the infrastructure of the special trucks and public education to ensure the project's success. What it means for Palm Desert is Waste Management will be distributing five of the 14 trucks to Palm Desert. Waste's intention is that the five trucks will be routed to collect as much trash and recyclables in Palm Desert as operationally feasible while still maintaining route efficiency. This truck in the slide is fueled for methanol; however, the trucks that will be utilized in Palm Desert will be CNG. Last, but not least, probably one of the most exciting aspects of the new proposed contract is over the next two years Waste Mangement of the Desert is committed to upgrading their fleet of vehicles 25 MINUTES t, REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL hire. u LTG MAY 25, 1995 s* * s* * * s* * * * * * * * * * * * s* s* * * * * * * s* * * * * * * LAn Di i "A" for collection. Collection vehicles that are operationally limited to collecting one service at a time will be retired and replaced with single -pass vehicles. Currently two trucks must drive down a residential street to collect the trash and recyclables; in the future, one truck will be driven down a residential street for the collection of green waste, recyclables, and trash. Collection will be all at one time, or all in one pass. Staffs worked pretty hard on these negotiations for six months. We think everything that Council has asked for is in these negotiations, and you have before you our recommendation. If Council would like, we have overheads of rates in the Coachella Valley, terms of contracts, and things if you'd like to see them. BAC I think that would be appropriate to see. LC Okay. I think we probably should start out with what our current rates are compared to other Coachella Valley cities. Okay. What you're looking at is Palm Desert at the top and currently that's how our rate structure's broken down. $10.58 for a single-family home who puts their trash at the curb. Palm Desert currently has a pretty complex rate structure with a bunch of different ways you can add to that or pay less like if you're multiple stops, but it's hard to compare rates from city to city because rate structures are very complex depending on what cities put into them. So we used curbside collection of single-family homes for the comparison all the way across the board. You'll notice the only cities that are less expensive are La Quinta and Cathedral, but if you look at the type of service column, both of those have tax roll billing, which means that the trash bill is buried in the r. „r ..A t, taxes, residents make no monthly connection as to how much their trash is paid. A lot of residents who have tax roll billing don't even think they pay for trash. You'll notice the green bar is for Waste Management, the yellow are Desert Hot Springs and Palm Springs, and then the orange bar is for Western Waste. You'll notice the Southern Coachella Valley Community Service District does pay less for trash, but they dispose at Mecca Landfill. They have no landfill rate in their trash collection free, they dump for free there. Does Council have any questions? The next one we could compare will be cubic yard bins, one three cubic yard bins, the commercial rates, Valley -wide. That's the size of bin that you normally see at apartment houses or in businesses, it's the standard size. Basically how it's broken down, these are the rates. Again, Southern Coachella Valley does not have a landfill fee, so we're right up there. Any questions by Council? Okay. The last one that we have we did a quick comparison, one of our Councilmembers asked us to, comparison of Western Waste Industries contracts in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. Of course, Palm Desert's on the top, that's our...the first column will show our current commercial and residential and then the next big column is our new proposed automated programs, and you can see the terms of the contracts, the prices straight down, franchise fees. If there are no questions, the final overhead we have for you... 26 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT —CITY COUNCIL lhr e, i u iG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * L! A J LI NAN BAC One quick question... LC Oh, yes... BAC ...on the middle column, the yard waste is an option that consumers will have and not a requirement, right? LC That's what staff is proposing, that yard waste would be a subscription for now. And the reason why is yard waste is still rather a mystery right now in the Coachella Valley. So what staff is recommending is that for the first year it's subscription only. Trash will be mandatory, and the fee for recycling will be mandatory, but not yard waste yet. We'll see where the program is in one year, audit it, if at that time Council would like us to look at going forward with mandatory. Right now the majority of our green waste is handled by gardeners, and it's taken to other facilities. By making green waste mandatory, giving every resident a green waste container, would then shift that flow of green waste from commercial, small businesses, and large businesses' hands back to the curbside and into trash trucks. So we're not sure if that's a step right now that we want to take. We'd rather ease into this green waste program. BAC So the requirements then would be the column that says "automated collection", is that right? LC Yes, those are...that's mandatory. You'd have to pay for trash collection service now in Palm Desert, you'd have to pay the recycling fee also. That cost would be City-wide. Even if you didn't recycle, you'd still have to pay for the service. RAS Is that included in the price...in other words, the... LC Yes, it is. JMB I thought... it was explained to me that every household would get a green waste and the other one for the $10.58. LC No. Donna, if you...the rate structure that is in your Agenda packet, we have an overhead for that. Thank you, Donna. And this is what's in your Agenda packet. The first bar across the top under variable rate structure are $10.58, $8.88, $7.22, those are the prices of the three containers in front of you. Taking one of those containers now is mandatory, right now you do not have to have trash collection in Palm Desert. Within that fee, you'll notice $1.50 mandatory for recycling. The second bar is for the green waste container subscription that staff is recommending, and if you include a green waste container with one of the containers above, those are the new prices. So, a green waste container is an additional $3.00. It's cheaper if you buy a green waste container as a second container than if you need a second container for trash. Waste Management is also I, a il, da. ;,1 that a 96-gallon and a 64-gallon green waste container are the same price. It doesn't matter what you pick. And if you need a second container for green waste, you will have it for 27 MUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * « * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * « r,AninII "A" free. It's three bucks no matter if you need one or two containers in whatever size. And that's...I have not seen that anywhere in the State of California. JMB Everyone at home will get one for waste and one for recycle... LC Right. JMB ...in the $10.78, $10.58. LC Yes. Councilmember Benson, what I have learned in Palm Desert is the gardeners handle the majority of the green waste, that a lot of the homes have gardeners instead of do-it-yourselfs like John Wohlmuth. JMB Well, I don't know that that's a true statement, because there are an awful lot of single-family homes on the east and the north that don't have gardeners. Country clubs (unclear). RAS Could we go back to the projection that you had before? LC The terms of the contracts? RAS Yes. LC Okay. RAS Under Palm Desert, it says terms of contract five years plus five-year option. Is that the new contract or the old contract? LC That's the old contract. RAS That's the old contract. LC Staff is still standing by their recommendation of February 23rd that this is only a five-year contract that we're looking for here, no extensions, no good faith, nothing. Five years. At the end of that, the City goes to bid. RAS Okay, the next question is in Coachella, which is Western Waste, they have a seven-year contract with an evergreen. What's an LC Yes, I'm going to read from my notes because when I define evergreen I tend to ramble. Okay. There is no legal definition for the term evergreen. The word evergreen is slang for a contract that automatically renews or is perpetual. Evergreen provisions vary between contracts, but in each case indicate an automatic renewal clause. The most common evergreen renews for an additional year on the anniversary date, such as a five-year evergreen is perpetual five-year contract until 28 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * s s s s * * * s s s s s s s s s * s s s s * s s s s * s s * * * s s s s N.dr-uLl "A" written notice is given to initiate a five-year wind down, or if it's a seven-year evergreen it's a seven-year wind down. RAS That's the way you understand it? So if that contract•is cancelled five years from now, it's good for another seven years. LC Right. RAS Okay. BAC So the City of Coachella, then, if they cancelled their contract this afternoon, would still have seven years left... LC On that contract. BAC ...on that contract without the ability to get out of it. LC Yes. Um, yes, yes, it's a long time. Haulers will say that it allows them to make capital investment in equipment and invest in your city and programs. Generally, the solid waste industry feels that it really does eliminate competition and it binds the city's hands from looking at what other cities and what the industry is doing. Evergreens are kind of...they're actually on the way out. Most cities now because of the complexity of landfills closing, California Integrated Waste Management Board, AB939, just can't be bound to something like that, and more people are educated about solid waste today. Any additional questions for staff? BAC Not at this time. LC Do you have any questions for John Wohlmuth? BAC Not at this time yet. I suspect we will before the afternoon's over. LC Okay, I'll just have a seat and..fifteen minutes...not too bad. BAC Now, while... LC Would Council like to hear from Dave Hardy from California Bio-Mass? BAC What I think we will do is, while this is not a formal public hearing, lest we be accused by anyone of not allowing the public to speak, we will make sure that anyone in this audience obviously who wishes to address this matter, as we do on all items, has that opportunity but to sort of make sure it doesn't end up commingled I'll just simply start by asking...what I'm going to ask is, first of all, for those people, if my colleagues so agree, to ask those people who would like to express comments that are favorable to the staff recommendation to make those comments, and then we'll 29 MOI L)' La REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mt in+IG MAY 25, 1995 s s s s s s * s• * * * s s s s s* * s s s*• s s s s s* s s s s s s s* r A iiDi i "A" follow that with people who are opposed to staff recommendation. Is that comfortable with my colleagues? RSK Well, I would...one of my comments...that we try not...we have had public hearings already, and that we try to present new material and not things that we've heard already. BAC Or... RSK We went over, what... BAC I know... RSK ...two hours already... BAC Right, but some people may not... RSK ...so now we have new...that's what I'm saying, we have some new material, we have other things so that we address these things and not rehash the same things that we did for two hours before. BAC Okay. RSK Hopefully. BAC Alright. Are there those in the audience who wish to offer comments that are supportive of the staff recommendation? And I would give the courtesy, if I might, of opening that with our colleague from the City of Indio. TH Thank you, Mayor Crites. Tom Hunt, 47-770 San Salvador, Indio. Mayor Crites, members of the City Council. I have a brief statement, prepared statement, that I would like to read with your permission. Thank you. I'm currently serving as the Mayor of the City of Indio. This fact, I believe, confirms that the information I'm about to relate is accurate. However, I do not purport and in fact disclaim that my statement represents an official position of the City of Indio or of the Indio City Council. The City of Indio has enjoyed a waste collection contract with Waste Management of the Desert or its predecessor companies continuously since 1979. During this period the solid waste...am I getting through here? During this period, the solid waste collection business has undergone significant change. The Waste Management of the Desert has rotated management personnel through its Coachella Valley offices. The company's service philosophy has remained predictable and dependable. Waste Management has been a willing and cooperative partner in meeting the waste collection and disposal needs of Indio citizens. Most recently a three- year extension of Waste Mangement contract was negotiated in exchange for free curbside residential recycling. This program will help ensure that Indio will meet the waste diversion requirements of AB 939 that all cities in California face. This recycling program was instituted at no additional cost to our residents. Furthermore, Waste Management agreed to provide 30 M NUTZ'S REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * s * * s s * s s s s * * * * * s s * * * s s * * * * * * s s * * * * * s s r dnwi t "A" additional City-wide free dumping clean-up days as part of the contract negotiations. In summary, I offer my personal vote of confidence in the professionalism and integrity of the individuals who represent Waste Management of the Desert and extend my sincerest recommendation for them and their company. And thank you very much. BAC Thank you, sir (applause) RS Excuse me. My name is... BAC By the way, if I may, we'll make this a little like the announce at a graduation, you can if you wish hold all your applause until the end. RS Hey, come on. BAC Except for...with the exception of this speaker. RS Alright. My name is Robert Scholl. I live at 261 Serena Drive in Palm Desert. I've been a resident here for a little over ten years. I had planned to speak about the efficiency of Waste Management, but I think the slide show covered that pretty well. What I would like to emphasize is that in addition to being good contractors, good waste haulers if you would, they are good citizens. The people in Waste Management, the people who work there, the company itself, .has demonstrated that, and I think you've seen evidence of that in most of the major activities that take place in the City, particularly those in the City park. You've seen their containers at all of the events in the park that attract a great many people, but what you don't see that way is the background work that these people do. I've been involved with the Golf Cart Parade Committee now for about six years; and I can assure you that the Waste Management people, including last year's chairman John Lavendar, but others on his staff, others at Waste Management, have worked diligently to see that the Golf Cart Parade is a success. The contribute to it in many ways. The same is true of the 4th of July celebration, same is try of SpringFest and most of the other major activities in the park and including things outside the park such as The Living Desert. The old saying "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", and it sure ain't broke. They do a great job (applause) BP Mr. Mayor, Council, by name is Bill Powers. I live in Indian Wells, but I own a business here in your fine city and I have been a banker here for several years, and I think I can speak from a position of experience regarding Waste Management. As Bob said, we've worked together on a lot of things, and I've worked with the principals of Waste Management throughout the years, with Ray Burke, with John Lavendar, and now Patty Sommerville. Their leadership is what makes this company keep going on steadily. They are superb service, they give superb service, they're innovative, they're progressive, they're ethical, and best of all they're a community asset. Personally, I've volunteered with their leadership on the same events as Bob mentioned, the Palm Desert Golf Cart Parade, United Way of the Desert, July 4th, SpringFest, just to name a few. All of the above items I have mentioned describes a valued corporate citizen and leader, a partner with its businesses and community, and a truly involved concerned company. And I think it also 31 MINUTES t.-;: REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL I r r,iii G MAY 25, 1995 « « « « * « « * « * * * * * « « « « * * * « « * « « « « * « « « « * « « « « ��lttu�ll .A■ describes Waste Management. And I would urge you to retain them as your contract refuse company. Thank you. DC Hi, my name is Dennis Chappell. I am here representing the Desert Contractors Association at 74-856 Joni Drive in Palm Desert. In order not to be redundant, I would like to state that our Board of Directors has voted in majority for me to come here and state our position and feelings for Waste Management and we are also as Tom, Mayor Tom Hunt from Indio, has stated we are not in a position to endorse or not endorse, but we would like to state that Waste Management is the only waste company that is a member of the Desert Contractors currently. It has also been directly involved in all of the events that we have participated in as a non-profit organization as well as the charitable events that we are directly involved in in the Coachella Valley, the Builders Fest for Childcare, the SpringFest for the City of Palm Desert, 4th of July events, and all the other events that we are directly involved in as an organization, we have seen and worked with volunteer staff members and the other efforts that were put forth by Waste Management, and we would just like to show our support for their involvement and active role they play in this community. DF Good evening. My name is Dianne Funk, 72-755 Pitahaya in Palm Desert. I spoke last week on behalf of Waste Management, and I don't want to reiterate any of the comments that I had made about how pleased I was with their service. However, I think the buzz word at that meeting was the use of the words competitive bid process, and general counsel at that time was not sure how the competitive bid process worked into this situation, and I was wondering if there is any ruling at this time, as I'm curious. Shall I...last Council meeting, Western Waste was sending out mailers and talking about the competitive bid process. My question at the time was if Waste Management presented Council a bid for services, did it not become public information and therefore allowing Western Waste the ability to see those numbers prior to putting together their bid submission. BAC Or anyone else. DF Or anyone else. And at the time, Doug Phillips was going to go run to the library and check it out. BAC Well, whether it is or it isn't, it looks pretty public. So, yes. DF So that's how a competitive bid is based. BAC You're saying... RAS It was not a closed bid process. BAC No. DF So any competitive bid would just have to be as it is presented now. That's considered competitive. 32 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Nizz uu JG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * It d ri L i i "A" BAC Mr. Wohlmuth, would you...you do get to do something. DF Don't kick me with that. JW The answer to the question is...we discussed it with Waste Management. Once we bring a negotiated franchise agreement back to the Council, it becomes public. At that point that it becomes public, the Council can either accept it or reject it, and if they reject it they can direct Council to go out to bid. Certainly those numbers are public if they go out to bid, and certainly Waste Management or any other hauler has the ability to bid based on those numbers or any other numbers. It is certainly public information. RAS Would the next bid be a closed bid or an open bid? JW There are...in the information item, there are basically three steps. One, negotiated franchise. We've negotiated the franchise, we've concluded the negotiations, you can reject the negotiated franchise. If you reject the franchise and the proposal that we're giving you tonight, you can go out to a proposal process which is a competitive but less formal than a formal bid, which is a closed envelope. Normally, the process includes a Request for Proposal, then they send a proposal, we discuss that rY wv v.tal around the table. The bid process would require detailed specifications and a closed envelope bid. RAS Thank you. DF Thank you. KK Good evening, Mayor Crites and Council. My name is Kathleen Kopp. I live at 44-870 Cabrillo here in Palm Desert, but more specifically I live in the Palm Desert Water & Services District. Now there are probably people in this audience who don't even know what I'm talking about. In fact, a lot of people in the District don't know what I'm talking about. I would like to see you continue your work with Waste Management. We used to have them. I wish we had them back. I would like to kind of update you on what has happened in the Service District. They had a competitive bid, and I'm sure we're going to hear a lot about competitive bids tonight, so I'm going to update you on the competitive bid process in the Palm Desert Water & Services District. Evidently, the prices were the same, but we lost our recycling. Now I was here about three weeks ago, two months ago, or whenever, complaining about the recycling. They have now, Western Waste and the Board, have decided that we can have recycling; however, there is a charge. So, the charge is going to be $1.95 a month, which is a 20% increase over what we're supposed to be paying. So now you can see we're going to get the same service we had before for less money, but now we're going to have to pay for it. I'm really irritated about this because it just shows that the competitive bid did not work. I mean, so much for the competitive bid in the Palm Desert Water & Services District. We've been had. We have been had in the Palm Desert Water & Services District. 33 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL l izz i wiG MAY 25, 1995 * * s* * * * * * * * * * s• * * * s* * * * * s* * * * s* * * * * s$$ l! i4.0 m1 "A' BAC So what you're saying is that now to get back to your original level of service, you're now at 20% higher rates? KK That's correct. 20% higher. I do have one other concern about this company. We've had eight pickups by this company. I question some of their methods, and I am very concerned about the safety of the people on the streets of Palm Desert as well as the people that drive their trucks. I have some pictures here that I would like to show you, and I would like to explain to you what's going on. They have a truck that has a fork on it, on the fork they have a bin. The truck moves around the neighborhoods with the bin forward, and they fill the bin and then tilt it forward on the fork back to empty it into the truck. Now, we have a man, a young man, riding on the edge of this bin all the time. There's about a two and a half inch, three inch, railing. If I drove around the streets of Palm Desert on the front of my car, I'd surely be arrested. They're the greatest back up company you've ever seen. They back up everywhere. They back up the streets; this morning they backed up Portola. They back up their recycling; they're great backers. The other day, on the 18th, I believe on the 18th of May, I was coining down Portola going south towards Fred Waring, and we have a Western Waste, a big orange truck, going down Portola with the man riding on the bin. We have kids out of school, which I can imagine that they can think that would be great fun to jump on this bin. I can't imagine what would happen if they were to hit a curb, accelerate too fast, stop too fast. I mean, do I have to explain further... to throw someone underneath this truck and crush them. So I'm very concerned about the safety of not only those of us who are on these streets, but those people that are working for this company. I hope you will remain with Waste Mangement of the Desert. Thank you (applause) FF Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Buford Crites. I, too, was very much involved with what Kathleen has said. RAS Would you give us your name and your address, please. FF I'm sorry. My address is 74-138 Santa Rosa Circle, my name is Frank Frary. RAS Thank you. FF Originally, I came to you guys because I also was not aware like Kathleen that we lived in the Palm Desert Water District Services. Due to the new contract as you saw on the slide, my rates have more or less gone up. The citizens of Palm Desert are paying $10.58 whereas I am paying $11.82. That's the different rates. There...I don't know why we have different rates within the City of Palm Desert. What I would very much would like you to consider just sticking with one company. Also, Mr. Snyder in an earlier comment mentioned that in regards to let's keep things among ourselves. One of the things that I am very much aware of is the fact that Western Management is in Cook Street; therefore, they are part of our own community. That does not mean that Western Waste in Coachella is not part of our community. But they, Waste Management of the Desert, is paying our taxes and they're also employing employees in Palm Desert, which 34 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * r dnivai "A" eventually the flow of cash will hopefully stay here, especially if the general contractor builds smaller houses that everybody can be able to afford them. Anyways... WHS You've been here a while. FF In regards to their recycling, I also am very concerned about their recycling and the methods that Western Waste uses. Presently, they use a truck that they separate everything, I'm sorry, they separate just in two ways. They put all the newspaper together, the cans, the glass, everything else, the plastic bottles, everything else that has to be recycled. It is put on another side of the same truck and then everything is dumped somewhere in Cathedral City, where? I do not know, and then somebody else goes through it manually. I don't...in my own mind it is kind of difficult for me to think about having somebody having to work to separate the glass, which is probably broken, the cans, the plastic bottles, and whatever else is thrown in there without actually having it separated. So that was one of my main concerns. Yes, just like Kathleen mentioned, on our water district, as of February, more or less a month and a half later, we had no recycling whatsoever, and we got recycling back only after several of us complained. First I came to you guys, you guys said I'm sorry, it's the water district, it's a whole new kingdom. I learned about my water district. At the same time, I called Western Waste in Coachella and I asked them that...I told them that Waste Management of the Desert was taking my recyclings away, my recycling bins. Western Waste said I'm sorry, we're not...I asked them to replace them, if they were going to replace them, and they said no, because that was not written in the contract. So it appears to me that somebody down the road has dropped the ball in regards to recycling. Now, Waste Management of the Desert already has the plant, and it's being used on a daily basis, so I would like, in my opinion they have two pluses to be considered. Their recycling and also the fact that they're here within Palm Desert. I thank you so much (applause) AFG Mr. Mayor and members of the Council, my name is Abrahm F. Goldman. I live at 99 Conejo Circle in the Chaparral Country Club area. My comments are relevant to the rate schedule that's been discussed here which I suspect is in the development stage, and to avoid duplication of costs, I would suggest that you give weight to doubling up. For example, in the discussion of collection of grass cuttings, the gated communities typically have contracts with firms that collect the grass cuttings, so that there would be a duplication if there was an additional charge for grass cuttings collection. The other item has to do with what appears to be an option to select different size containers and with different fees. And in gated communities typically there is a standard fee for all occupants which is normally collected in the monthly assessments. My point goes to really to ensure that when your schedule of fees are established, that you give weight to the avoidance of duplication. Other than that, it seems to me that the City is doing a good job and that if your legal...if your legal advice is you have to stay with your contract, so be it. On the other hand, if you find that there is sufficient agitation, apparently open bidding might be one of your options. Thank you for... yes... BAC I might respond on just one issue, and this has really nothing to do with whether it's Waste Management or Browning Ferris or Western Waste or anything like that, and that is I think this 35 MINUTES M1 _ Y REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL 1b7.r.� i ii IG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * zAtuDii "A" city is committed to the idea that we need to begin to let citizens know what the cost of disposal of trash is, and that rather than have a person who recycles and who economizes paying the same thing as somebody who just dumps it all out, that we're at a stage now with no matter whom we contract, that we need to let people know that folks, if you can do a good job in terms of reducing the amount of trash that you produce, the amount of money you have to pay for it is also going to decrease. And I think that system is one that it's time for as it is across California and as it is for cities because of the mandatory reduction of the amount of trash that we produce, by State law we have to get there and certainly this is one way to do that, and we are sensitive to that issue. AFG Well, the City is to be complimented of course on the development of its programs and projects, and I'm working with your long-range projection program with John Wohlmuth and staff there, so that if you would put into your record this option with regard to cost factors and non -duplication of services, I think we would appreciate it. BAC Thank you, sir. PS Good afternoon. My name is Patty Sommerville. I'm the Division President, Waste Management of the Desert. I live at 3 Palmilla Way in Palm Desert, California. Lovely city. Lisa asked me to do an update real quick on the Sunnex project. In Cathedral City we started a pilot program, about 750 homes where we took in a green waste program. We put an automated system out, the 96 and 64 gallon containers, and we have been doing that since February 1, 1995. And just to let you know, we're pulling about six tons of green waste a week out of there, and 15 tons of trash, six tons of green waste, so about 40% diversion on the green. waste. We're getting a great response, the new program, the bear claw that Lisa showed on the slides earlier. It's working wonderful. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank my coworkers for showing up for the birthday party tonight. They're...they came to me knowing what we're going through...I try to keep them in touch in what the contract negotiations were at and how we're doing so that it's a team effort. You know, it's not just Patty Sommerville out there doing it, they're out there doing it themselves too, every day. So, they came to me and asked if the they could start early today and get on their routes so that they could attend the meeting tonight. And I want to thank them for that, and they've had a long day today so I'm sure they're looking forward to getting out of here. I'm not real good at winging speeches, so if you don't mind I'm going to read this. It's as sincere as ever, though. Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers. Waste Management has served the City of Palm Desert for the past 14 years. I think that each and every one of you agree that Waste Management of the Desert has been active in the growth and development of the finest and most progressive city in the Coachella Valley — Palm Desert. Personally, I have chosen to be involved in my community. This year I was the United Way Palm Desert Chairperson as well as being elected to the United Way of the Desert Board of Directors. I'm an active member of the Palm Desert Rotary and Waste Management of the Desert sponsored the AAA — Athletics, Academics, Achievement — student of the month at Palm Desert High School. Deborah McGary, Sales Representative at Waste Management, is on committees that range from the Palm Desert Golf Cart 36 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * zAt iniY "A" Parade, the Palm Desert 4th of July Celebration, to the infamous Palm Desert SpringFest. Kathy Mitchell and her companion Cycler have been involved in public education aimed at recycling awareness throughout the schools and festivities in the entire Coachella Valley. She has also managed programs such as the Christmas tree recycling program and the telephone book recycling program. John Lavendar and Kermit Martin have been active in all of the above and then some. I won't bore all of you with that. I think you know their commitment and their contributions to the City of Palm Desert. My point is this. Waste Management of the Desert is an active participant in the City of Palm Desert. We are as proud of the City as you are and enjoy these festivities and their success as much as you do. Does this warrant you to approve the second portion of our contract tonight? No. Although it should be considered — a solid foundation of proof of our intent and commitment to the second term of our contract. What should make you feel confident in supporting your staffs recommendation today is that Waste Management of the Desert has never let the City down. We were the first to bring residential curbside recycling to the Coachella Valley and did it at no additional charge. We opened the first State -certified buy- back center and intermediate processing facility at our location in Palm Desert. We are in the process of constructing a used oil tank so that the residents can bring in their waste oil and have it properly and safely disposed of. Now the proposal in front of you offers many more firsts for the residents of Palm Desert. Automated variable can refuse service, additional commodities in the residential curbside recycling program, automated curbside green waste, alternative fuel refuse vehicles, and one -pass refuse vehicles. What you have in front of you to approve is an innovative, comprehensive, waste management and recycling program that we are proud to offer to Palm Desert at the lowest rates found in the State of California. When Lisa Constande and I sat down several months ago and began this negotiation process, she assured me that when all was said and done, we would be presenting you with a comprehensive program that we could all be proud of, and that is exactly what you have in front of you. If you haven't noticed by now, I am very proud of the company I represent, and I'm also very proud of the 123 employees that I work with. Not one of us have ever taken our contract with the City of Palm Desert for granted. We have provided our customers with outstanding service while offering innovative waste disposal and recycling options. We look forward to continuing that relationship well into the future. Thank you for your time, and on behalf of the 123 employees I represent, we hope you support staffs recommendation for approval of this agreement. Thank you (applause) KM Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers, I'm Kathy Mitchell, Waste Management of the Desert Recycling Coordinator. I reside at 72-805 Tamarisk Street in Palm Desert. I have two letters before me that I'd like to read to you. One is from The Living Desert who cannot attend tonight but wanted me to read the letter. Another one is from a Palm Desert resident who also couldn't attend but was adamant that we read the letter. First one's from The Living Desert. To Whom It May Concern: The Living Desert has benefitted from our relationship with Waste Management of the Desert for several years. They donated a bin for our Cans for Critters program in which we collect cans whose proceeds help feed our animals. They also supply bins for public 37 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL lb r z i n G MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * s*** * * * s * * * * * * * s * * * * * s* s * s * * s* s* s LAni mi "A" recycling of cardboard, office paper, glass, and plastic. Company representatives have also participated in our Earth Day celebration for the past six years. They have a booth and donate extra waste receptacles at this event. We have found them to be very helpful and prompt with any inquiries we have had over the years. Sincerely, Carolyn Colbert, Education Specialist. The next one is from the Palm Desert City resident. Dear Members of the Palm Desert City Council: Previously I have sent you a copy of my .response to Western Waste's questionnaire which was mailed to Palm Desert residents. I write this note just to make sure you have received the viewpoint my husband and I share. We are receiving excellent service from Waste Management. Why in the world would we want to change to another company? We moved to Palm Desert from the mid -west eight months ago and have been favorable impressed with the prompt, neat, efficient trash collection here. We are also pleased to be part of Palm Desert's recycling program. So few communities enjoy trash collection service of this calibre that Palm Desert residents should not take it for granted. As for the bidding process, it alone does not determine who can provide the best service. The bidding process is only one consideration in contract negotiations. I shudder to think about the quality of life in a community in which decisions were based solely on who is the lowest bidder. I trust your decision -making will be guided by the voice of reason rather than by the voice of intimidation. Sincerely, Alfred and Nancy Meyer. Thank you. DM Honorable Mayor, City Councilmembers. I am also an employee of Waste Management of the Desert. I would like to read a letter from Mr. Fred Tretta. He is unable to make it this evening, and for the record, my address is 79-645 Camelback, Bermuda Dunes. Dear Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers: As you are aware, I am Chairman for the Palm Desert SpringFest, and I would like to go on record to state that Waste Management of the Desert has been a major sponsor of this event since its conception. They have participated not only by donating services, but also by participating, organizing, and running this event. Waste Management is one of the foremost leaders in this community, and they are always first to volunteer and sponsor such events. Please consider the extension of the trash hauling contract to Waste Management as this is not simply a contract issue but much, much more. They are a welcome part of our community. Thank you. RB Honorable Mayor and Members of the Council. My name is Raymond Burke, I live at 72-263 Rancho Road in Rancho Mirage. For the benefit of the audience, I was in charge of this division since 1984, 1984 to 1994 when Patty Sommerville has taken the helm and done an excellent job. Our commitment to service is expected here, and I think this community deserves that, and I think we've proven that. I just want to talk a little bit about the history of the negotiations in this contract that we really entered into. And I know you're going to hear some legal mumbo jumbo from our opposition here but I think we really get down to an ethical situation and what is justice. And I know that this leadership of this Council has always acted in that behalf. But in 1990, when we negotiated this contract, we were concerned about the term. We were concerned about the investment that we had to give in order to maintain the relationship, the positive relationship we've had for many, many years. So we looked at the term language very carefully, and we felt that it .011 38 IMINUTTS _ REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Aux,' u iG MAY 25, 1995 s* * * * * * .* * s* * s* * * * * * * * s* * s * * * s* * * * * * * * * rakrumi "A" was our obligation to give the City of Palm Desert a window to review our services and our performance. But at that same time that if we had the sign of approval with what we were doing, that we felt that we should get the additional five years, and I think I can stand up here today and say that we have done exactly that. Staff and Waste Management, Patty Sommerville and Lisa, have negotiated for six months, six to eight months, and achieved exactly what the City of Palm Desert needs. And I look to this board and I ask you under what is really ethical. Is the legal language something that we want to interpret, or do we really want to be what's right for this community. And I know that...I feel confident that the decision will come out in our behalf. Thank you very much. BAC Is there anyone else who wishes to offer comments that are favorable to the staff recommendation? There being no one, those who would wish to offer comments to the contrary to the staff recommendation. And I might remind you that we are going to break at 7:00. LT That'll be perfect, Mayor. Mayor Crites, Members of the Palm Desert City Council. This has been cast unfortunately in the last several minutes as an issue of burgundy color versus orange color, of Waste Management of North America versus Western Waste Industries. With all due respect Mayor and Members of the Council and members of the audience, that is not the case. The case here is very simple... BAC Would you begin by identifying yourself and giving your address? LY I think I've been here too many times, Mayor. BAC I know, but we start from scratch. LJ Lance B. Jones, 70-920 Jasmine Lane, Rancho Mirage, representing Western Waste Industries. BAC Thank you. LJ This is not burgundy versus orange. You know what the color is that is of concern here tonight? It's that color, ladies and gentlemen, it's green. It is a cost of services. It is the multitude of taxpayers and rate payers and businesses perhaps far too busy to be here tonight who expect that you as the stewards of the public business will see to it that the best possible services at the most competitive prices are what will be contained in any new contract. I am sure that Waste Management has been a distinguished corporate citizen, participant in all sorts of civic affairs. Absolutely, I would have expected nothing less of them. They are an esteemed, respected colleague. They are, after all, the world's largest trash company. But the issue, after all, again, is an issue of service at the most competitive rates. I want to make, before I get into the discussion of the rate comparisons, the rate comparisons that actually demonstrate that under the Western Waste proposal dramatic savings would inure to the benefit of the taxpayers and residents, to talk briefly about staffs position paper. And although this position paper tells us that, well negotiated agreements are nice because it allows staff to select programs that are best suited to the community, 39 DES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr.z i u iG MAY 25, 1995 * s s * s s s s s s s s s s s s s s * * s s s s s s s s s s s * s * s s s s r.Anui i "A" and the staff can support local facilities which I assume means the Waste Mangement Recycle America facility, and they can give priority to tenure in the community which I'm not quite certain but I've never seen that as a primary criteria for major contract, especially contracts that total almost $15 million, that unless you're a member of the community you can't bid on it, and also the ability to be able to judge rates in adjacent cities. And again, I ask the Council to please be aware that when we saw all these rate comparisons, remember that 99% of this valley is controlled by Waste Management of North America, and the rates you're going to see are rates that have been negotiated exclusively with Waste Management by other city staffs. But under the arguments for a competitive proposal, and I think very convincingly by Ms. Constande, we see repeated over and over and over again competitive proposals confirm the best price. They allow item by item comparison for services. They also point out as a negative to the negotiated process, Ms. Constande pointed out, that with exclusive negotiations there may be a public perception of impropriety. And certainly we don't believe there should be any public perception of impropriety. The contract provided for this and we understand it, and we understand good faith negotiations, and we understand that they are now concluded. With all due respect to Mr. Burke,. the right thing is not going to be to roll over the contract just because of citizen participation, just because of support of some local charities, it's going to be based upon a demonstrated ability to provide continuity of excellent service at the most affordable, the most competitive prices. When I get into the rate comparisons, it'll be imminently obvious to all of us here today that the last thing that we have here is parity of prices. We have Western Waste Industries almost consistently across the board providing 20 to 25 percent savings to resident taxpayers and businesses. Now let's talk a little bit about the negotiated agreement that has taken approximately eight months to conclude. We were kind of amused when Ms. Constande suggested that the competitive proposal process was a lengthy process. I've seen some competitive proposal processes concluded in 45 to 60 days. These negotiations have taken approximately eight months. But let's look at the key components, and just to make this very simple and to get on with it very quickly, Western Waste says yes to virtually all of the following: yes to enhanced residential curbside recycling, yes to the residential trash collection with variable rate structure, yes to the green waste recycling, yes to cleaner burning vehicles, yes to semi-annual neighborhood cleanups, yes to the annual Christmas tree collection at curbside which you will experience for the first time I would assume this Christmas if you do roll over this contract but which Western Waste has been providing to its Inland Empire customers since 1990. In most of our cities, also, the funding support for the new city programs, we . t t , i, that wholeheartedly, concur in it and acknowledge it. AB939 indemnification, we first offered it in February. Waste Management is now offering it. Of course we concur in it. Flow control at City discretion, we concur in it. So for all practical purposes, we're standing before you this evening and saying yes to the negotiated contract. Western Waste Industries can do the same thing and will ink those provisions tonight if need be, tomorrow if possible. So where's the difference, where's the meat? What's the difference between Waste Management of North America, their proposal, and that of Western Waste Industries? First of all, we say yes to better services, and yes we can provide better services than those negotiated over eight months by City staff. And we say no to the much higher prices that Waste Management intends to charge the voter taxpayer of this city. What is the better service? Very quickly...Waste 40 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL 11-irr, i u tiG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * LAnID11 "A" Management of North America indicates that it is going to continue to provide the three stacked crates. The three stacked crates will be continued until they are phased out either by theft or by loss and eventually then replaced by two 14-gallon containers Western Waste Industries, at no extra charge, is going to provide a 68-gallon wheeled• container, larger than the one that you see there, and excuse me if the lid made some noise, I didn't realize that it was going to do that, but it will contain a (unclear) Senior citizens are not going to have to be able to lift the heavy 14- gallon containers carrying newspapers for a period of a whole week and take those out to the curbside. They'll be able to wheel it out in a trash container such as that dedicated strictly to the commingled recyclables, effortlessly, and that's included at no extra charge in the Western Waste proposal. And by the way, there was a lady who did speak earlier who suggested that now the numbers of Waste Management have been somehow revealed. Well, those numbers, specifically the numbers that are the entire basis of our rate comparisons, were presented to this Council on February the 23rd when we told the Council, myself personally, that the $10.96 figure that was then presented to you, the best that had been thus far negotiated by staff, that we would meet that number and in addition we would give you a full-blown green waste curbside automated program for the 5600 single-family dwellings in the City of Palm Desert. As we look at some of the other options that were provided for in the...Mr. Mayor, we're getting very close to the seven o'clock hour. I perhaps have about five more minutes to conclude, particularly with that. Would you like me to continue, sir? I appreciate it. In talking about better service, I believe that this cart system that we are proposing is going to be far, far more advantageous than the baskets, and I've already explained that. The second area of what we consider to be better service is the green waste collection processing and marketing which we believe is the cornerstone, one of the real cornerstones of this proposal that has been brought forward to you. Today's staff report, and I quote, stated "Waste Management is required to successfully site a permanent local compost facility in the Coachella Valley." I'm continuing to quote, "Waste Management, in conjunction with California Bio-Mass, will have the facility open and operating by July 1, 1995." Today, we've heard that that's already now been pushed back to September 1, 1995. • Currently, California Bio- Mass owns and operates one very successful facility in Fontana, California, presumably a compost facility. In truth and in fact, and perhaps Mr. Hardy can help us because I understand he's here from California Bio-Mass, San Bernardino County authorities indicate that California Bio-Mass does not own the facility at that location, it leases. Furthermore, the site is not a permanent composting facility, and according again to Environmental Health Services and the Planning Department, the operator is planning to submit paperwork to amend the land use permit to allow for composting. No paperwork has yet been submitted. So, indeed, if there is permitting going on at that location, assumingly it is illegal. With reference to them siting a facility in Coachella Valley by July 1, which we now understand is September 1, Riverside County Planning and Environmental Health Services indicates that there has not even been preliminary paperwork submitted to describe the project. Administrative review process to follow has to determine the level of CEQA compliance, then Planning Commission approval, and the Commission I have been advised will not meet again until August. After that, Environmental Health Services requires 180 days before it can permit. So rather than September 1 of 1995, a date which has been given to you as a cornerstone of this whole green waste proposal, as to why to quick enter into a contract with Waste Management of North America, it would appear that any green waste facility that might be 41 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Mal iuiii "A" permitted would not even be operational much before February or March of 1996. And by contrast and stark contrast Western Waste Industries has been actively involved and has been a pioneer in green waste recycling since 1987 when my company, United Pacific, was very much involved in the cutting edge. We've diverted over 1.9 million tons of material from area landfills, we work with local fertilizer companies where our material serves as a soil amendment that has been processed. Today as far as green waste, Western Waste actually collects 35,000 single-family homes today with fully -automated service in the Inland Empire. We're not talking blueprints here, we're not talking specifications, we're doing it. The whole cornerstone, unfortunately, of what we see if Palm Desert talks about a subscription program which I assume is letting people know that green waste is available, those people calling up then being told that it will be $2.98. Ladies and gentlemen, members of the Council, how many people are going to actively engage in that sort of a green waste program when they are informed that it's going to be an extra $2.98? I suspect not many, and I suspect that there will not be much diversion for a significant period of time if that is what is going to continue. Western Waste on the other hand would advocate that we very aggressively go out and market this with people being exempted only if they can demonstrate absolutely no production of green waste, but we need to do that, and we need to do that for a number of reasons. And one of the reasons and not the least of which, is a policy statement that was issued by this board back in 1989 when it said Resolution No. 89-48, be it further resolved that the City of Palm Desert will set a goal of reducing the waste stream by 1989 20%, 1990 30%, 1991 40%, through the implementation of programs to include but not limited to composting green waste recycling. We understand from Waste Management here in 1995 they are currently at 27%. This Council's stated objective wanted to see 40% by 1991. And in 1995 to 1996, ladies and gentlemen, there is no way that any appreciable addition is going to be made to your diversion goals without an aggressive green waste collection program. Please believe me, that is just the bottom line truth. In a series of full -page ads, Waste Management has told the taxpayers of Palm Desert we are dedicated, quote, to providing the most economical and professional service available anywhere. The most economical. And again, as we quickly look at this chart, you will see that they have far from submitted to you the most economical price quotations. Western Waste's prices are almost 25 % in the critical categories underneath that of Waste Management, translating into a savings to taxpayers and businesses of over $1.5 million. I am now going to throw away about four or five sheets in the interest of expediting this. Let me at least take the opportunity that I can, Mr. Mayor, and I want you to be able to see this. BAC I assume it's the same thing that's right here. LI Yes, it is. RAS Well, then, we've got it. BAC We've got it. 42 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 *** s s s * s s s s s s s s s s s * s s s s s s* s s s s s s s s s s s s LA D_ ril l "A" LJ Again, in this area very critical, you have to understand (unclear) should be put over here because the total service for the green waste and the refuse under the Waste Management proposal is S13.56, $2.60 per month per service recipient more than the Western Waste proposal. And on it goes down (unclear) There is only one category, and that is (unclear) green waste 32-gallon (unclear) container that is higher than the Waste Management proposal. Again I would submit to you that if you're serious about getting diversion (unclear) towards your diversion goal desperately needed by the Year 2000. In closing, let me just share this with you if I can. Again, I have tried, I could not avoid it with this, but I have tried, Mr. Mayor and members of Council, not to couch this into any sort of a combative relationship with our esteemed colleagues in burgundy. But the point is, Bill Evans from Channel 3 television, on May the 20th of 1995, summed it up best when he said, "Trash is big business. This contract", referring to Palm Desert, "is worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $ 15 million over the next five years. Palm Desert officials need to make sure that they are getting the best deal for their taxpayers, so why not look at all the offers and see which company is really willing to perform for Palm Desert." Before I finally close with a quote from the Desert Sun, I would only say this. Again, Waste Management is a global company, competitive bidding is nothing new to them, they don't need to be protected from it. If they are in fact confident that they will continue to give you the best service at the most economical price, which is what they said in the newspaper article, then they would not hesitate to enter into the bidding process. In closing, the Desert Sun, summing up the virtues of competitive bidding in trash contracts in a May 18th editorial said, quote "There is nothing wrong with testing the waters to strike the best deal for City residents. In the end, the Council's greatest obligation is to the taxpayers. Before approving any new contract, Councilmembers should be willing to, at the very least, review proposals from all firms qualified to do the job." I beg your indulgence for taking this long. These are things that we felt very passionate that needed to be said, and I thank you for the opportunity of having addressed the Council this evening. RAS I move that we break for something to eat. BAC Okay. Half hour? RAS Yes, half hour. BAC Okay, we will stand in recess for 30 minutes. BAC I will call back into session the regular Palm Desert City Council meeting of May 25, 1995. And Mr. Jones, I believe you had just finished speaking, so if there are others in the audience who wish to offer comments in opposition to the staff report, now is the time. LYN Mr. Mayor, members of the City Council. My name is Lynn Crandall. My office is a 43-645 Monterey in Palm Desert. I'm here tonight as an attorney speaking on behalf of Western Waste Industries. I think to a certain degree I'm uniquely qualified to address some of the issues that are before you. I've certainly had considerable experience in certain Waste Management issues, particularly in the area of recycling. As some of you perhaps know, I was counsel for Palm 43 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL lhr z i it G MAY 25, 1995 s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s$ Ldn.bii NAN Springs Recycling, Inc. that was involved in litigation with Waste Management and the City of Rancho Mirage over the subject of exclusive franchises. That case went from the Superior Court to the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court of California and was resolved there with a case that has been the subject of widespread discussion. The fact is that the issues that are before you tonight are evolving and are very important. To a certain extent they are confusing, confusing I think because the law here and the science is changing a great deal. My remarks are going to be addressed to some of the legal arena, but they're based on the assumption that you, representing the City, want to consider other alternatives to the Waste Management contract. If you don't, then of course, essentially my remarks are going to be irrelevant. But one of the questions that's come up and has been discussed is the subject of this negotiation in good faith clause. And I'm not sure that...well, it's a confusing subject, I'm not sure everyone understands it and I don't purport to substitute for Mr. Erwin in giving you legal advice. But I do want to state our position on behalf of Western Waste Industries on those issues. Certainly, one of the important questions is the City free to act now to negotiate with others in light of the existence of that clause in that contract. And it's our position that indeed you are. You have been going through a negotiation process for the last eight months as I understand it, certainly a lengthy period, and you have in fact negotiated in good faith. In my opinion, based on whatever action you might take tonight, it can't be said that you have not negotiated in good faith legally. So you have discharged, depending on how you act tonight, your responsibilities in that regard. The clause does not mean that the City is limited to entering into a contract to extend the Waste Management contract or anything of the kind. If you have the desire to consider other alternatives, there is a way to accomplish that. And I believe, I'll have to disagree with Mr. Wohlmuth, if I understood his remarks correctly in talking about the alternatives you have, I think the fact is that you have a whole bag of alternatives that you can take advantage of. You can negotiate further with Waste Management, you can negotiate with Western Waste, you can negotiate with others, you can put it out to competitive bid, you can do anything you want provided you free yourself of the ability to do that. The way to free yourself, legally, and I think the City Attorney will support me on this, is to vote against the recommendation of the staff, to vote against the Waste Management contract. You have, in doing that, you're saying we have negotiated in good faith but we don't like the deal that's presented, we don't like the deal, we think it can be done better, or at least we want to give it the opportunity for it to be done better. I want it to be very clear that in voting against this contract, if you were to do that, you would not be thereby saying Waste Management is out of the picture. That's not the case. You can still talk to them. It's going to lead to a competitive situation. If there's any principle that came out of the Palm Springs Recycling case, it was that competition is good for the subject of recycling and it's certainly the case that it's good for cities in the administration of their governmental affairs. Why? Because it leads to lower prices, it leads to the best price, it leads to the best deal, and when you're dealing with a $ 15 million contract, 1 would venture to say that I don't know that much about how you make money in the trash business, and you don't either. Your staff doesn't. And there's one way to ferret out that, and that's to put it out for some sort of bid or some kind of exchange between the companies who want to talk. Now, Mr. Mayor frowned when I said your staff doesn't. I don't mean your staff doesn't know anything. What I'm saying is they don't know the intricacies of making money in the trash hauling business. That's not their business. None of us does, probably, so how do you protect yourself as a city 44 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT ciTY COUNCIL Mr..ziwiG MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * L rr ■ iz 1 "A" government? My answer would be to put it out for some sort of competition. That's going to lead to the best result, and you're free to do that, legally. You have...you're not bound, and as I say, I think the City Attorney will support me on this. You're not bound by having all those alternatives, you're not bound to a situation where you have to do away with Waste Management if you vote no. What you're saying if you do that is that now we're back to square one, we can negotiate, we can have open bidding, we can do anything we want to get the best price. Everything I've heard tonight has been talking about how good...what good people Waste Management are, what a good job they've done. That's a given, but that's not what this is all about. This is about price, it's about the best price on a very expensive contract for your residents, that's what this present decision you have to make tonight is all about. It's not about the man riding on the front of the truck for safety considerations, because you can handle that. You can pass regulations, you can police that, you can do anything you want. It's about price, and you have the option to go that direction tonight by voting down the staff recommendation. Thank you. BAC Are there others who wish to offer comment? MB My name is Marvin Brown. I live at 44-136 Fairhaven Drive, and I've been here since 1950, so I've seen the jackrabbits and the squirrels go. And it's always been when I first came here it was always the south against the north, and we finally got that resolved but it looks like we've got another south and north thing going here. Now I don't know anything about Western Waste other than they wake me up every morning dumping their dumpsters next door. And so I really think that this should be put out for a competitive bid. I think that's an honest and best way to do it. Thank you. BAC Thank you, sir. LW My name is Lowell Weeks, and I live on Covered Wagon Trail in Palm Desert. I appeared before you two weeks ago in a position I was neither in favor or against. All that I wanted was the best price that we get for our money. But I thought tonight, after listening, I might make a few corrections. The young lady that made her statement I presume she was a City employee, the first statement. Talked about this great farm university thing we're going to have. Put that to one side. I am with a group that we are not in favor of it, we control, the group I'm in, approximately one- third of the acreage, and they're going to have to get our permission to be charged before we have the great university farm thing. That's still to one side. So that we can't do. Another thing that...no one has told me and the audience what this chart...the overhead that we had showed that, and I don't even know the names of the two companies... Waste Management was cheaper than Western Waste. Now I look at this one, and it's the other way around. I hope, Mayor, that somebody will tell us which one is correct. Otherwise, I don't know what we're here for. And then for some of the emotional things that I heard today, and as you know I worked with public agencies for a few years so I know these emotional things, Waste Management's home is here in Palm Desert. How do they answer that when they go to La Quinta and Rancho Mirage and the other cities they serve? They then are foreigners, they must not be home folk. Another one is 45 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr.r.iwiG MAY 2S, 1995 : s* s s s s s s s s s s s s s** s s a s**** s$ s s s s s * s* s s r LruniI "A" about all their community activity. I would expect that. I'm a member of Rotary Club down in Coachella Valley, and we're in charge of the Date parking Festival every year, I personally am in charge, and Western Waste furnishes us an office, they bring in all the trash containers, they furnish us free toilets, I would expect them to do because they're serving that area. That's part of you're expected to do if you're going to be community minded. So those emotional things to me doesn't have anything to do with what we're here for tonight. And I have a couple more questions. If this figure is right, and I'll probably be up there in that top one, it looks to me like there's about $2.60 a month that I'm going to be paying more. Now I'm going to pull a figure out of the air, I suppose there's 6,000 individual accounts in Palm Desert, that's six times two, that's 12, that's $30,000 a month? That's how many thousand dollars a year, I don't have my calculator today. Where's that money going to? Is that going to the City? Now I heard that they're going to give some of the community activities, they're going to put money in certain... quit smiling at me...put community...money in the community, who's money is it? It isn't theirs, it's mine, and so to me there's only way that you can get the best price for Lowell Weeks, because I'm sure both companies will give me the same service. I can tell you that their old recycling bins that are at my house are broken, and we don't get them replaced. They're both going to give me the same service. I want to know from this chart who gives me the best price. And if it takes you to reject this offer tonight, renegotiate with them. Maybe once they see these prices, they'll meet them. If they do, fine. I'm glad of it. But I think that for not only the protection of the City, the protection of the individual citizens, and for your own self-preservation, it would be much better to get out where you don't have to make the decisions, these two companies or somebody else makes the decision. Thank you very much. BAC Is there anyone else who wishes to offer comment? GK My name is Gary Koontz, Browning -Ferris Industries, 3890 Eleventh Street, Riverside. So far we've been the quiet company in this whole affair. We intend to try to remain that as long as possible. We don't drive orange trucks, we don't drive maroon, we drive blue trucks. We're the other company. As I'm sure you're aware, we are in support of opening this thing up for competitive bidding, and that's about all I'll say on that. In terms of competitive bidding, we'd just like you to remember that it's not an issue of dealing...a straight competitive bid between Western and Waste, but there are other alternatives to consider. You know. We hope that if you consider bidding this out, that BFI is one of those other alternatives you will consider. Thank you. BAC Is there anyone else who wishes to offer comment at this time? There being no one, then...it's not a public hearing but in essence we'll close the public comment, then, and ask members of the Council have questions of staff or of any of the speakers or comments to make. RSK Maybe we could get staff just to address this question again about a disagreement between the charts of... whether... the charts we have here show Waste Management's lower than all the others I see around Coachella Valley plus the ones I see from... LC Yes, those are the current rates that the cities are paying. 46 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mrr, MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * &Argun' "A" BAC Microphone. LC I'm sorry. Those are the current rates that the cities are paying right now in the Coachella Valley for trash collection. RSK Where does this other figure come from that's supposed to be lower? LC I don't know what you...I don't know what they're talking about. These? I don't know, I've never seen these before this evening, I've never seen any rates except what came in today in the Desert Sun, so I don't know. RAS While you're up there, Lisa, in the ad... LC Okay, Jim. RAS ...in the ad that Western Waste put in the Desert Sun this morning, there's a comment "after taxpayers protested, Waste Management offered lower prices and optional green waste collection, just a few of the extras offered by Western Waste last February." LC Councilmember Spiegel, I have a copy of our Agenda from October 10, 1994. All the negotiations with Waste Management occurred here at City Hall and had an Agenda, and if I go to page two, roman numeral four, way back in October we were talking about green waste, residential yard trimmings, transition options, dropoff sites, automated programs, so it's always been on the table. RAS So they didn't have the right information. LC It's always been on the table. It came with no pressure from Waste Management for green waste. John says it better than I do when he talks about the historical aspect of the Valley, we couldn't bring you a green waste program without siting a facility here for a local solution, not putting it on a tractor trailer and taking it a hundred miles in one direction somewhere. JMB But in the October notes that you have there, you were just talking about it, they had not agreed to the green waste. LC This was our very, very first meeting Councilmember Benson, with all...actually the Agenda was pretty intimidating, it was two and a half pages of solid things that we started from to what we brought you this evening. JMB But they had not agreed to all of those. LC This was our very first meeting, this was our very first meeting, but green waste has always been on the table since day one. 47 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL lktre,iii11v MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * zAiiim "A" JMB It's been on the table but not agreed to in the beginning. LC Well, we can't agree to it on the very first day of negotiations. JMB I didn't say that, but you indicated that they had agreed to the green waste and in that, that was October you were talking about it. LC Even when staff came on February 23rd to present to Council, green waste was going to be an option, it was the siting of the facility that we had not secured. It would have been very foolish of staff to bring you a container without somewhere to take it. In the staff report, we have two sites, Whitefeather Farm and World Products, which are not sites for green waste recycling. Right now World Products is a dump, it's an unmitigated, unmonitored dump of green waste up there, and if we put those containers on the street tomorrow, and we took our green waste up to that facility, we would only be compounding the damage that's going on up there, so we have to...we have to have a contractor that's willing to site a successful composting facility. That facility up in Thousand Palms, their permit is perhaps up for revoke on June 15th. RSK Well, you know you really ought to give staff and Council a chance to talk it over now. You know, we... BAC Wait a second, Mr... JB I was going to address your question (unclear) LC No, their question was to me, Mr. Brockman, did I know what these numbers are. It wasn't for any kind of clarification on your part. BAC If we want, we'll inquire. We shan't be shy. Now, continue if you have questions or comments. RSK Well, just that, you know, bidding is a wonderful thing. Everybody concurs, you know, bidding is a way, you know, it's a government...government does it all the time. To say that you can't get as good as service at the lowest cost unless you bid, that's not what my experience tells me. And we just built two buildings on this r. „r;,. Lf right here, and we bid one, and then we just picked a builder and built the other one, and the one we picked the builder and built without going out to bid, what was the difference, Mr. Ortega, in the cost? CLO I think it was about 30%. RSK We did it for about 30% less than where we let bids out, so...I have a little experience. In fact, Mr. Weeks and I have a lot of experience working together. He used to dig out stuff up, and we used to dig his stuff up, and Mr. Weeks and I used to negotiate who was going to pay for it. And I've had lots of experience where we've negotiated things and got a lot better deal and a better price than just letting it out for a bid. And then, another thing that goes deeper than that, there's 48 11ES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * LAII I11 "A" a certain amount of fairness in what we do. We hired an architect this year to do a golf course and later we found out...we hid an offer for somebody that was better, but we already made a commitment, and so even though we might have rather had the other architect, we lived by our commitment because we made a commitment. In this case, it seems to me we've been working now on the basis that we signed a contract five years ago with an option of negotiating improvements and bringing it up to the state of the art at this time, so this is what everybody's been working on. All the other companies...I don't care whether it's Western Waste or BFI or who it is, all the other companies have the advantage of looking at that and designing their bid from the standpoint of somebody that's worked out it looks to me to be an excellent waste management program. And then, there is this thing...well, first, if now we decide, and it's what I'm in favor of is moving ahead with this, but if we don't have any kind of a sunrise clause or evergreen clause or negotiating in five years, then if we sign a contract for five years and we know in five years everybody's going to start from a level ground, then that might be another thing. Then bidding would be fair to everybody. But I look around when I buy a car and I bid one off against the other and then I get a good deal somewhere, and so this is a car that really worked out good, I go back and give that dealer first chance, and I make an attempt to negotiate a price that I think is right. And I've done that pretty good doing it that way, and then I have to think about somebody that's done...been loyal to me and my business and what kind of a job they've done in being loyal to me, and I look back, I'm the guy that came to the Council and said I'd like to put together a recycle program for the City of Palm Desert. The Council was all for it, go for it, so in two weeks I came back with a program, and then they said good, it sounds great, and then in six weeks, six weeks, we had a brand new recycle truck picking up recycle, the best program in the State of California. Now, when I got into this business I went around all over to conferences to learn about the waste management business and recycling business, and some people may think that I'm a dumb councilman that doesn't know anything about waste management, but I happen to think I know a lot about waste management. And so, anyway, at these conferences I hear these cities talking about having a consultant come in and they've got a consultant they paid $50,000 to put together a recycle program for them, and it's a year ago, it's a year has passed and they still haven't picked up one single aluminum can. So I don't know any other city that I've done had any acquaintance with, and I know lots of them all of the State and all over the United States and all over the County and Southern California, that they didn't come close to putting together a recycle program. And they can brag about and talk about well somebody did this and somebody did that, but the fact is I know Palm Desert's at 80% right off the bat, and I don't know anybody else that ever did that. And then there's that other thing...Lisa, you're a pretty good employee. Well, after five years, why don't I bid your job out? I could probably get somebody cheaper, but you've been around here for five years and given me good service. And I think if I can solve all my problems of being loyal to people that have served me well and negotiate a good contract, one where the customer actually pays less than he has been paying and less than anybody else in the Coachella Valley, and less than anybody else in California, then I think I've done a pretty good job for my constituents. And I happen to have a little experience with all of the people, practically, involved in all the companies that are here, and I happen to think that of all the companies that I've dealt with and seen with and watched make presentations all over the County and the State that Waste Management is one of the best companies around. So we have the opportunity sit down with good 49 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL b r r, i u'G MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * r.A.n■aiI "A" employees and go through and negotiate every single thing that we want and the way we want it, and we've demonstrated that we're a city that can put together a good program. We did it before anyone else in Riverside County or Imperial County or San Bernardino County. So it's not like we don't know what we're doing. And, as a Councilman, I have to do what I think is best for my city, and in this case I happen to think what's best for my city and what's fair for all concerned is to go along with what our staff, and I have great respect for our staff, I think they did a tremendous job putting this r ,.. b.an together, and so for me, I feel, I'm going to feel more comfortable doing what I think is fair and right and knowing in mind that I've got a good r..,6.4m for my citizens. If they decide to kick me out in November, so be it, as long as I go home and sleep good. That's what counts to me. So, my thing would be that we would sign this contract, approve this contract and then five years from now, we'll leave that evergreen out of there, and I challenge, I'd like to see Western Waste in all the contracts they sign from now on to leave them open at the end. Let's see if they'll do that. From now on, let's see them open up those contracts and give everybody a shot at them so all those other cities will have a chance to do the best job for their citizens. Personally, I think that we'll do the best job for our citizens if we approve this contract tonight (applause) RAS Okay, I guess it's my turn. BAC Bob, may Lisa... RAS Yes, do you want to sit down, Lisa? I don't have any more questions. LC Oh, I thought (unclear) RAS Mr. Weeks is right, in my opinion. I'm the newest Council person, only been on the job for about four months. The one thing that I have learned is that, at least for myself, I'm not a controller, and I shouldn't be a controller, I should be a facilitator, and one of the things that you would look at when you look at trash pickup, is how much it costs you. There's something else I think you ought to look at that's equally important, and that's what kind of service you get because if you don't get good service, I don't care what the product is you're buying, sooner or later you're not going to be happy with that product. So you've got to look at best price, you've got to look at best service. Earlier this evening, Mr. Folkers, who I respect very highly, as I do everyone that works for the City, that's one thing that I've learned in four months is I don't know what the other cities have got but in my opinion we've got the best, said to us we're going to spend $2 million on engineering for an overpass that's going to go over Cook Street. That's a lot of money, and we decided it, you know, almost like that. Why? Was it a competitive bid? No, it wasn't a competitive bid. How many people did you talk to? Well, we talked to five or six. Did you take the cheapest? No, we didn't take the cheapest. Why did you take the guy you took? Because he's the best, that's why, because he's the best. So, I'm not going to sit here and say to Mr. Folkers because I respect him as much as I do, why the heck did you do that, why didn't you try to go out and get the cheapest? Why? Because I want the best overpass over Cook Street, over Highway 10, that we can possibly get in the City of Palm Desert. That's what I'm looking for. And I feel 50 M NUMS REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Liln■n11 "A" the same way about trash. I can say this because I wasn't a member of the Council five years, we probably shouldn't have had a contract whereby after five years we're going to negotiate in good faith with someone and then let's take a look at what everybody else offers. That usually isn't the way it works. All I know is that I look at comparison figures that have not been questioned, and Coachella is paying more than we are. Now the Palm Desert Water & Services District, because when it was taken over by Western Waste, they said we don't want recycling. Now by law the City of Palm Desert has to cut the trash that goes into the landfills by 50% by the Year 2000 based on our 1990 trash. I think most people are aware of that. That's by law, or we get a fine. Palm Desert Water District said it's not our problem, that's Palm Desert. Well, I thought they were part of Palm Desert. Maybe I'm wrong. I thought Western Waste knew they were part of Palm Desert. Maybe I'm wrong. Now they are picking up the recyclables, but you add on the cost of the recyclables to what the trash pickup is, it's more than what they would have been paying in Palm Desert had the same contract continued on. So, I've got to say, you know, it's...this open bidding is a wonderful thing, but when I look at what other people are paying that are using Western Waste, and then I see well we published what Waste Management wants to do after people that represent us, the City, our staff, have negotiated, not for one month, not for two months, five months and have gotten everything, so they've told me, that they wanted, then I've got to go along with staff. And so I'm happy with Waste Management (applause) JMB Well, I'm glad Mrs. Kopp came back because I did want to reiterate, it seems to be that waste...garbage haulers are notorious for backing up because I happen to have Waste Management, and I came around my corner the other day, and if I hadn't been looking, I would have ended up in the garbage truck because he was backing up my cul-de-sac so fast that if I hadn't put on my brakes, I would have got it. And luckily it was before these hearings started or I might have thought they were after me. However, I have to agree with some of the other speakers here tonight that this isn't between Waste Management and Western Waste. We all know how much Waste Management has done in the desert, we all appreciate how much they've done, and there's a lot of the rest of us that have done a lot in the desert as well, and we do it for community spirit, we don't do it for monetary remuneration of some contract or something, we do it out of the goodness of our hearts. And I, like Councilman Kelly, I have to do what I think is best for my constituents as well and what I feel good with, and I have fought this battle since the last one in 1989. I had hoped this year that we would truly have an RFP, not going out to somebody after they knew the other one's bid and ask them to counterpropose it. That to me is not an RFP or I don't know what an RFP is. I thought it was that you told them what you wanted, then everybody came in and bid, and then the best man won. But obviously sending them a letter and say the Council directed us to ask you, we weren't going to do it if they didn't, but they did, so we're nicely going to ask you. That to me is not a fair playing field. And I would hope, again, if nothing else comes out of this, that it takes a long time to get anything done around this place, but if it took ten years to get open bidding so that we never go through this again, I'll be satisfied. BAC Well, I just...I guess I'll go right to the issues that I think are important. When in 1989 and '90 when this was looked at, it was looked at by both contractors, by Waste Management and Western Waste, as an approximately ten -year -long process. One company wanted a thing called an 51 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL Mr -a,' ii G MAY 25, 1995 * * s* * * * s s *** s* s s * * * s s s s s* s s* s s s * * * s s s* LA W.DII "A" evergreen, which gave them five years and then if we backed out at five years, they had another five years to wind the contract down. So had we in 1990 accepted Western Waste's proposal, we'd have five more years. The r . ,.mil from Waste Management said we'll take a five-year contract and with the intent of negotiating . in good faith for another five years, at the end of which that contract is over. Now I agree with Jean, at the end of that period of time, as it was when it was looked at, as a matter of fact when we signed the contract with Waste Management, theme was nothing in there about a second good faith clause for the second five years. And I agree with you, I mean when we signed it in 1990, there was nothing in there about anything of that nature. And I agree with you there shouldn't be, nor was there an intention of it, at least by me when I voted five years ago for that to be true. But, point then being, in either case we would have had an approximately ten-year contract. Let's look at prices. And I guess the easiest way to do that for Mr. Weeks, at least for me, is to say okay let's say there are three people living next to each other, and one of the chooses 96 gallons, one chooses 64, and the other one chooses 32, so you've got three people,_ one with each level of service. If they...if we accept the Waste Management offer, and by the way there's a...the green waste issue is a separate issue because one of these, Waste Management's, is an optional program and Western's at least as was presented by Mr. Jones is a mandatory program, that's what I heard you say, that we should initiate and should do. So I want to look at, just for apples to apples, I'm going to look at without green waste and compare them. You have three people, three homes, one at each level. At Waste Management the total price is $26.68. Now, for Western Waste, it depends on whether you believe what the reporter seated in the audience says Mr. Brockman said to her yesterday, and if that's true, Western Waste's would be $31.38 for those three homes as versus $26.68 for Waste Management, or instead if you don't believe what apparently may have been said or may not have been said yesterday, if you accept what we have before us this evening, from Western Waste you have $26.72, which is a grand total of...Waste Management is four cents cheaper across three homes, one at each level. I think that's about as even a deal in terms of prices as you can possibly come out with, that's not a huge, major difference. On top of which, we do have, as people have pointed out to us all evening, some other issues. We do have an issue in which not once during any of our discussions have I had anyone show up at this meeting to complain about the services offered by Waste Management. We have been besieged by people on the issue about what happened in the Palm Desert Water District, not only in terms of lack of recycling but in terms of types of service and, now, no matter what happens in either of these, citizens in the City of Palm Desert, unless they choose the very largest size, are going to have cheaper trash rates when whoever we sign a contract with is signed than they do right now. People in the Palm Desert Water District, between what they're paying individually and what the District is having to subsidize, are now paying 20% higher rates than they were before the contract changed. If that's an example of what a company gives you, on the basis of that, I would suggest that lower rates are better than higher rates, and I think we have lower rates from this contract. 52 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 s* * * * * * * s* * * s s * * s* * * * s * * * * * * * * * * * * s s s s tAIlID1a "A" In addition, and I say that with appropriate respect, Mr. Brockman because I've known him for a long time and have considerable respect for him, I very deeply regret what 1 think has been a deliberate attempt to misrepresent data on a number of cases about this set of contractual issues. And rather than just make a general phrase, I'm going to be very specific and give you about four examples. Number one. In the postcard that Western Waste sent out almost a month ago, they noted in it that the City, quote, doesn't even intend to ask for public comments, as if we intended to pass a waste contract without allowing anyone in the public to say their peace. If you've ever been to a meeting in the City of Palm Desert, we don't talk about anything except perhaps the invocation and the pledge without allowing everybody in the room who wants to to stand up and say their peace, and you know that's not true, and you guys knew it when you sent it out. Number two. We've never allowed you folks to bid. It was on the screen tonight. There was a contract handed to us in 1990, it had bid proposals in it and everything else, it has cost figures, it's simply not true that Western didn't have a chance to bid. They did. Right or wrong, they didn't receive the contract. That's a separate issue. Number three. It's from today's paper. The idea that, quote, the only reason that in essence that we have lower prices and a green waste collection system is because the quote, taxpayers protesting on the meeting of May the 1 lth, as if that all of a sudden triggered the discussion of optional green waste collection. That is flat not true. And last, that this is all about competition, and one firm liking it and one firm not. And yet, in our own city, the firm that tells us we don't think we should have anything but competitive bidding very happily took a contract that is exactly like the one they're damning in front of us tonight, which is a five-year contract with a five-year potential renewal on good faith. In the City of Coachella, it's an evergreen contract which never allows the city to get out with less than five or seven years notice. And in other cities all around Southern California, Western Waste has contracts against which they are speaking tonight. And I'm not arguing that Waste Management doesn't have them as well and that Browning -Ferris probably doesn't have them as well. But, fair enough, stand up in front of us and say hey, folks, we're very happy to have an exclusive franchise, we're very happy to have an evergreen, we're very happy to give you, whatever you want to give us we'll take. Don't stand up and pretend to be something that you're not in other cities. It cheapens the currency of democracy and it cheapens the presentations that you make in front of people when you do that and when you're not honest about it. That's the end of my... (applause) RSK I would move that we accept staffs recommendation and support this proposal contract. RAS Five year... BAC Five year, open bid or closed bid or competitive bid as was intended five years ago at the end of this ten-year period. RAS I will second that. BAC There's a motion and a second. Is there further discussion? There being none, please cast a ballot. 53 MINUTES . REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 25, 1995 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * r_ uni i "A" MPF Has everyone voted? The motion carries by a 4-1 vote, with Councilmember Benson voting no. BAC And we will stand in recess for five minutes. 54