HomeMy WebLinkAbout1992-03-16 - City Commission Workshop Meeting MinutesNo Text
CITY OF TAMARAC
CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING
MONDAY, MARCH 16, 1992
Tape 1
CALL TO ORDER : Mayor Abramowitz called the City Council Workshop meeting
to order at 9:00 a.m. in Conference Room #1, City Hall.
PRESENT :
Mayor Norman Abramowitz
Vice -Mayor Dr. H. Larry Sender
Councilman Henry Schumann
Councilman Irving Katz
ABSENT
Councilwoman Diane Glasser
ALSO PRESENT :
Join P. Kelly, City Manager
Dina McDermott, Assistant City Manager
Mitchell S. Kraft, City Attorney
Councilman Elect Joseph Schreiber
Phyllis Polikoff, Secretary
Mayor Abramowitz said the purpose of the meeting was to discuss garbage
services.
City Manager Kelly's Secretary distributed:
1) Copy of the City's present Residential Garbage Service Contract with
Waste Management, Inc.
2) Copy of a letter and accompanying documents dated February 27, 1992 to
Ms. Karen Sampson, Esq., U.S. Department of Justice.
3) Draft of a letter to Dennis Urbanski, Southern Sanitation, dated March
16, 1992.
Mr. Kelly said the present five-year contract for residential garbage
services would expire on September 30, 1992 and his suggestion was to
notify Waste Management in writing of the City's intention not to renew
the contract and to go out to bid. He asked City Council to authorize him
to go out to bid for garbage services and said a Request for Proposal
(RFP) was being prepared for this purpose.
Mr. Kelly suggested the bid specifications should include several options
and he mentioned the same type of service which was presently furnished,
twice -a -week pick-up with garbage cans, twice -a -week pick-up with garbage
bags, garbage cans and garbage bags, and any other system which was
available.
Mr. Kelly said he and Ms. McDermott prepared a short slide presentation
pertaining to residential garbage collection.
Mayor Abramowitz said this matter had been discussed during the past few
years and Waste Management communicated the request that the City not go
out to bid. He said Mr. Kelly discussed the bag concept with Waste
Management who placed many obstacles in the City's way.
Mayor Abramowitz said he would vote for the vendor who made the best
arrangement with the City. He said Council would receive pressure from
many areas about what type of garbage service was the best and he
suggested that each Council member do their own research rather than
having presentations made to the City.
C/M Katz said the Sun Sentinel Newspaper showed proposed tipping fees
would be increased from $62.50 to $68.50 and a similar situation would be
put -or -pay. He said he would save money by not paying for the amount of
garbage he ordinarily would have picked up but he would have to pay the
L'
City Council Workshop Meeting
3/16/92/PP
Page 2
increase in tipping fees.
Mayor Abramowitz said the City paid Broward County taxes and all residents
would be affected by put -or -pay. He said the bag system was a user system
and if the person used the system, they paid and if they did not use the
system, they did not pay.
Mr. Kelly said questions that Council would ask would probably be answered
by the slide presentation.
C/M Katz said 46,000 residents in Tamarac would be affected.
Mr. Kelly commenced the slide presentation and he said based on more
people producing more garbage, inflation, operating costs combined with
the increased cost at the landfills, the City had to examine its future
garbage costs. He said future disposal capacity at the landfill would be
limited, costly and would disposal costs would increase at an alarming
rate.
Mr. Kelly said he started discussing the bag concept several years ago
and with costs continuing to escalate, garbage costs would exceed water
fees in upcoming years.
Ms. McDermott said landfill sections in the Tri-County area were very
limited. She said the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the
Federal Government had additional regulations regarding environmental
impacts on landfills. She mentioned the use of special liners and
continual water testing and these procedures were getting more costly.
Ms. McDermott said the present cost was $62.50 per ton to dispose of
garbage at the landfill and by the year 2020, it would cost a great deal
more.
Mr. Kelly said by 1994, the City would be mandated to reduce the amount of
waste by 30% and this would force the City to monitor the City's solid
waste and to encourage recycling. He said presently the cost to recycle
was expensive but based on the economy and as more individuals recycled,
costs would stabilize and possibly lessen.
Mr. Kelly said in April, 1992, the City would continue its recycling goals
for the single-family recycling program to include newspapers, clear glass
and aluminum. He said the multi -family recycling program would be
implemented to include newspaper and aluminum.
Mr. Kelly said some of the benefits of recycling included revenue dollars,
extending the landfills, saving energy, complying with State regulations
and providing services to the residents.
C/M Katz asked about the slides and Mr. Kelly said some of them came from
Hazen and Sawyer and Ms. McDermott assisted in the preparation of the
text.
Mr. Kelly said major costs involved marketing and Ms. McDermott said also
shipments to market which were presently being expanded. She said there
were paper mills in Florida and Georgia and additional facilities would be
added in the future to recycle more products.
Mr. Kelly recommended several options which he believed should be offered.
He said the first option was the Variable Rate System which also was being
used in the City of Lauderhill.. He said the vendor would pick --up twice
per week and the resident would put out two cans at $10 per can, per month
and the resident would be billed $60 quarterly.
Mayor Abramowitz asked if the resident had to put out two cans and Mr.
Kelly said, no. Mayor Abramowitz said if the resident only put out one
can, he would be billed $30 and Mr. Kelly said he agreed and the resident
could change the number of cans quarterly and lifeline rates and fixed
charges could be established to maintain program stability.
V/M Bender asked about the legality of permitting two houses to share cans
and both Mr. Kelly and Mayor Abramowitz responded they were opposed to
this idea. Ms. McDermott said she would look into this question.
City Council Workshop Meeting
3/16/92/PP
Page 3
Mr. Kelly said another option of the Simple Variable Rate System was bags
whereby plastic bags would be sold by the vendor for garbage pick-up, free
bins would be provided or plastic bags would be sold for recyclables. He
said the City of Plantation was presently using this System and bags for
garbage could be purchased at neighborhood supermarkets. He said
newspapers and plastics would be picked -up at curbside for recycling and
any other recyclables had to be placed in recyclable plastic bags.
Mr. Kelly said City of Plantation residents were subsidized by the
commercial vendors.
Ms. McDermott said the residents would not have to pay for recycling if
plastics and newspapers were picked -up at curbside. She said a resident
would have to pay a small charge if they used a plastic bag to pick-up
aluminum cans.
Mayor Abramowitz said after many years, the City entered a recycling
program and everyone would get a bin for a small monthly charge. He asked
if there was a problem with the resident who purchased plastic bags for
garbage and used the free bin for recyclables.
Ms. McDermott said the City was in a contractual agreement for two years
for recycling and there would be a small charge for this service. She
said garbage could be bagged and residents could use the bins and
containers which the City received from a Grant. She said bags and cans
could be combined.
Mayor Abramowitz asked if there would be any problem if recyclables were
put in the bins and have the bins picked up for a small monthly charge and
Ms. McDermott said, no. Ms. McDermott said the garbage would go in the
bag and the recyclables would go in the bin.
Mayor Abramowitz said according to the contractual agreement, the charge
for recycling would be $1.16 per month, per household.
C/M Katz said these options would come into play after the two-year
contract expired for recycling.
Mayor Abramowitz said the City was presently paying for recycling and he
saw no reason why people should go out to purchase separate plastic bags
for this purpose. Mr. Schreiber asked why people would want to buy
plastic bags when they could use the bins and Mr. Kelly said whatever
system was decided on would have to be phased in and it would have to be
built in after the two-year expiration date.
C/M Schumann asked who paid the $400,000 back to the City of Plantation
and Ms. McDermott said the franchisee.
V/M Bender asked what happened if the homeowner went over the top of the
filled bin and Mayor Abramowitz said this was the reason why plastic was
not recommended. C/M Katz said dumpsters would be placed throughout the
City to accommodate the items which were not picked -up at curbside or
recyclable and plastic would never be recycled under the present
agreement. Mayor Abramowitz said he agreed.
C/M Katz said Harold Carter of All Service Refuse had indicated if there
were areas where bins were overflowing, an additional pick-up for
recyclables would be made.
Mr. Kelly
said the
impact on public
behavior
was if the plastic bags cost
more, the
resident
was encouraged to
recycle
more.
Mr. Kelly said some of the benefits of the Variable Rate System were more
revenue would be generated, it would minimize solid waste delivered to the
landfills and maximize recycling. He said there were objections which
would have to be addressed and resolved.
Mr. Kelly said in certain areas, the senior citizens generated little
garbage and recyclables and in other areas, families with one or more
children generated more garbage and recyclables.
City Council Workshop Meeting
3/16/92/PP
Page 4
Mr. Kelly said some issues he believed would be encountered were if the
garbage or recyclables were based on volume or weight, what method would
be used to collect payment, should the City continue to bill on the
Utility bill or could the bags be purchased at a neighboring supermarket.
Mr. Kelly said over the years, the vender was asked to bill the resident
direct. He said the vendor usually indicated the City's cost would be
increased due to mailing expenses and the vendor would lose the leverage
the City had with regard to the Utility bills.
Mr. Kelly said smaller vendors would be more apt to participate because
they had to pay first for what they were dumping when they went to the
incinerators. He said with the Variable Rate System, the small vendor
could go with the bag proposal because he would be paid up front.
C/M Katz said if the Variable Rate System was based on volume per bag,
how would the cost be distributed equally to the residents with regard to
the tipping fees. Mayor Abramowitz said the cost of the bag would be
increased and it put the responsibility on the hauler.
Mayor Abramowitz said Council had questioned how much trash was collected
in the City by Waste Management and Waste Management never answered the
question. C/M Schumann said it was hard to determine because Waste
Management went from one city to the next and Mayor Abramowitz said
everyone had to pay tipping fees.
Mayor Abramowitz said the escalation of tipping fees should be included in
every contract and everyone would have to pay more.
Ms. McDermott said in accordance with the present contract, the City had
to pay every time the cost of the landfill increased as well as when the
Consumer Price Index escalated. She said this could be adjusted in the
future contract.
Ms. McDermott said the prices for the plastic bags could be controlled
easier. She said the resident only paid for what was used and if the
were away for a period of time, they did not have to pay and Mayo
Abramowitz said he agreed with the user system. 11
C/M Katz asked how the cost of the tipping fees would be equitably
distributed and Mayor Abramowitz said condos and homeowners would pay more
in accordance with the increase. C/M Katz asked if this would be based on
a per -bag pick-up or a formula and Ms. McDermott said these were options
and there were other options. She said for future contracts, the City was
presently not locked into anything specific.
Ms. McDermott suggested the entire list of options be noted and every
company bid on those options. She said another option was to pay for what
was used.
Mayor Abramowitz said Mr. Kelly had indicated earlier that the goal was to
recycle more and in the very near future, the condos would commence
recycling. He said they would use less garbage if they recycled more.
Mayor Abramowitz said condos would pay less than homeowners because they
required less services.
Mr. Kelly said as far as the proposal, the vendor was given the
responsibility of marketing.
Mr. Kelly said the advantage in using the bag system was an immediat
saving and the disadvantage was a limited rate design. Mayor Abramowit
asked for clarification of a limited rate design and Ms. McDermott saill
there would be one rate and when the cost for the landfill was increased,
the cost for bags would go up and this was very limited.
Mr. Kelly said the advantage of the can system was a flexible rate design
and the disadvantage was waste compaction. Mayor Abramowitz asked if the
homeowner was wrong in stuffing a can and Mr. Kelly said, no.
Mr. Kelly said a 30 pound bag would be cheaper than a 30 pound can. He
said Waste Management had stated the City would be polluting the
City Council Workshop Meeting
3/16/92/PP
Page 5
environment with plastic bags because they were not biodegradable.
Mr. Schreiber asked how long would it take for a senior citizen to fill a
30 pound bag due to the fact they did not produce very much garbage. He
said a hardship would be created because it would take a long time to fill
up this size bag and Mayor Abramowitz said there were various sizes of the
plastic bags.
Mr. Schreiber asked if the Council ever determined how much garbage was
produced in a week's time by a senior citizen and Mr. Kelly said it was
very little. He said supermarkets provided small plastic bags which held
about two pounds of garbage and it would take several days to produce ten
pounds of garbage.
Mayor Abramowitz said garbage was picked -up twice a week for single-family
units and condos and it would still amount to the same number of pick-ups.
He said the senior citizen could buy the small bags at a lower cost. He
said there was no utopian situation and Council had to do what was best
for all the residents in the City.
Mr. Kelly said senior citizens were primarily concerned about the health
factor and an obvious solution was to consider smaller bags at a cheaper
cost. He said Waste Management advised this violated the health laws and
the Health Department was contacted to ascertain if a one -day -a -week pick
up would be acceptable in certain areas. He said the Health Department
stated they thought it was a good idea and they would be willing to try
this on a trial basis. He said one -day -a -week pick-up was allowable.
Mr. Schreiber reiterated his request concerning the amount of garbage just
collected in the City of Tamarac and Mayor Abramowitz indicated the
present City Council as well as several prior Councils tried to get this
information with no success. Mayor Abramowitz said the individual who put
the garbage in the truck was the only person to provide this information
and this individual refused to comply with the City's request. C/M Katz
said there was a Table which could offer some information.
Mr. Schreiber asked if the garbage was weighed in at the incinerator and
Mayor Abramowitz said, yes, and half of the truck also contained garbage
from the City of Lauderhill. Mr. Kelly said the mix was extremely
difficult to do but this could be discussed after he showed the next
slide.
Mr. Kelly said there were two pick-ups per week totalling eight municipal
solid waste collections each month. He said this was equal to 18 bags per
month and the average bag would cost $1.50.
Mr. Kelly suggested implementing a waste audit of the residents' solid
waste output and obtain demand and elasticity surveys from other cities.
He said the second step would be to obtain input from the community -based
surveys and to identify economic/social factors.
Mr. Kelly said during the first few weeks of the new hauler's contract,
the new hauler should be requested to isolate the City's garbage. He said
Waste Management was asked to do that and Mayor Abramowitz said Waste
Management stated they would comply by putting in separate trucks at an
additional charge of $4 per month more per household.
Mr. Schreiber said the City should determine what the hauler was picking
up because in his opinion, residents were being billed in excess of what
they should have been billed if the collection was only in Tamarac. He
suggested Council should research municipal garbage collections and Mayor
Abramowitz suggested Mr. Schreiber contact Mayor Robb of the City of
Deerfield Beach and the City of Fort Lauderdale who presently have this
program.
Tape 2
Mayor Abramowitz said the Simple variable Rate System enabled the person
who used less bags to pay less than the person who used more bags. He
said he would not be surprised if Waste Management came in with the best
deal.
Ms. McDermott said when she looked at the recycling program, a waste audit
was done to see what the dumpsters contained and most of the items were
City Council Workshop Meeting
3/16/92/PP
Page 6
newspapers, aluminum, plastics and clear glass. She said the focus was on
condos to see what recyclables the senior citizens were using. She said
another waste audit would be scheduled for each neighborhood to see what
was put at curbside.
Mayor Abramowitz said there was a formula which indicated how much garbage
would be collected from each household.
Mayor Abramowitz left the Workshop at 9:43 a.m.
Ms. McDermott said objections such as illegal dumping and burning and
possible duplication of payments were brought up. She also said revenues
did not always cover the cost and she mentioned the City had received
$148,000 in franchise fee revenues from the commercial hauler and this
money went back into the General Fund Budget.
C/M Katz said this would keep the Ad Valorem Taxes lower. He said if the
City wanted to subsidize a recycling program, they would just have to
increase the Ad Valorem Taxes for the amount of money used to subsidize
the program. Ms. McDermott said she did not know what the rates would be
and she could not make any assumptions.
Ms. McDermott said another objection which was brought up was bulk item
fees and she indicated that bulk items were picked up quarterly. She said
this option would be included in a future contract. She said the last
objection raised was waste compaction and how areas with waste compaction
would be handled.
Ms. McDermott said the City could build support for the Variable Rate and
Volume Based Systems by keeping the media informed, gradually providing
information to the residents, involving community groups, emphasizing the
benefits and passing out free bags with the start-up program.
Mayor Abramowitz returned to the workshop at 9:53 a.m.
V/M Bender said Council was being asked to authorize the City Manager tol
go out to bid and Mr. Kelly said, yes. V/M Bender said the nearest waste
disposal facility was controlled by Waste Management. He asked if Waste
Management raised the tipping fees, who would be affected and Mr. Kelly
said the tipping fees would be raised to every individual. Ms. McDermott
said the City signed a contract last year with Broward County and garbage
went to the Broward County incinerator.
V/M Bender asked who controlled the dumping rates and Ms. McDermott said
Broward County.
Ms. McDermott suggested starting a pilot program in a designated area
where their garbage contract would shortly be expiring. She said several
different types of demographic profiles would be implemented and
monitored.
Ms. McDermott indicated the next slide showed positives and negatives for
the different types of programs. She said the homeowner would be made
more aware of what was discarded and what could be recycled. She said
presently the City paid $14.91 for single-family residential services each
month and $7.50 was paid for condos.
Mr. Kelly recommended that the City proceed with the alternative garbage
program because payments to the vendor would be lowered and many
complaints would be eliminated. He said there was limited capacity at the
landfill, more room was not being created, costs would be increased and
Waste Management's rates were also going up.
Mr. Kelly said he was ready to send notification to Waste Management, in
writing, within 120 days of the expiration of the existing contract that
the City would not automatically renew the contract. He said the City
would proceed with the RFD's from the other vendors.
V/M Bender asked if Mr. Kelly wanted a Resolution to proceed with his
recommendation to notify Waste Management about the contract and Mayor
Abramowitz said Council would render an Expression of Interest.
V.
City Council Workshop Meeting
3/16/92/PP
Page 7
Mayor Abramowitz asked for an Expression of Interest from the Council and
he said it would be agendized for the next Council meeting. The Council
agreed to have Mr. Kelly proceed with the letter to Waste Management.
V/M Bender said City Attorney Kraft would prepare a Resolution indicating
a letter would be written to Waste Management indicating the current
contract expires on October 1, 1992 and the City's intention to go out to
bid. He said the Resolution would be agendized for the next Council
meeting.
C/M Katz said the current commercial contract indicated the vendor would
collect monies up front quarterly and would distribute it to the City up
front monthly. He asked why the vendor was allowed to hold the money in
this manner and Ms. McDermott said that the commercial contract was five -
years old. C/M Katz stated the vendor collected monies up -front quarterly
then the City should be paid up -front quarterly and he asked for this to
be addressed in the new contract and Mayor Abramowitz said he agreed.
Mayor Abramowitz asked that Council suggest some vacation dates. He said
this was in the Charter and Mr. Kelly suggested June 15 through July 10.
Mr. Kelly said the schedule for providing the budget, according to the
State Statute, was July 6 but Council would be on vacation. He also
suggested July 6 or July 10 and Budget Workshops could start when Council
came back. He said the budget would not be prepared earlier than July 6.
Mayor Abramowitz said July 4 was a highlight in the City and it was very
important to him and although the Charter mandated when the budget had to
be delivered, it could be done when it was convenient to Mr. Kelly. He
said he would be in the City on July 4.
Mr. Kelly said the time -frame for presenting the budget to the Council was
July 6. He said he wanted the Council to be present on July 6 when the
budget was released.
With no further discussion, Mayor Abramowitz ADJOURNED the Workshop at
10:10 a.m.
CAROL A. EVANS
CITY CLERK
1-1