24. Los Altos GarbageCUPERTINO
Summary
PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
AGENDA ITEM ~ ~ AGENDA DATE July 7, 2009
SUBJECT AND ISSUE
Defer for 90 days any consideration of the letter from John Zirelli of Los Altos Garbage Company
(LAGCo} proposing additional collection services and expansion of recycling services for the City of
Cupertino in exchange fora 5 year extension and an additional fzve year option of the existing LAGCo
Solid Waste Services Contract with the City which will expire October 3 i, 2410.
BACKGROUND
On May 20, 2008 the Council approved $'70,000.00 to fund additional services to be provided under
the City's existing Solid Waste Services contract with (LAGCo), and appointed two of its members,
then Vice Mayor Orrin Mahoney and Council member Gilbert Wong, as a Council subcommittee with
the objective of exploring additional Household Hazardous Waste {l-II~V-~ and other services.
A letter, dated May 21, 2009, was sent to the subcommittee from John Zirelli, General Manager of
LAGCo. The letter proposed four expanded or additional collection services and the expansion of one
single stream recycling service in exchange for a five year extension to LAGCo'.s current Solid Waste
Service Contract as well as an option to extend the contract an additional five years beyond that.
There are two significant implications that Mr. Zirelli's proposal raises that staff believes should be
carefully weighed by the Council before any consideration of this or any other proposal by LAGCo to
extend their existing service contract. These considerations are as follows:
Process Scenario and Schedule for a New Solid ~JVaste Contract
The current contract, as noted above, does not e~~pire until October 31, 2010, o~Ter a year and five
months from the date of Mr. Zirelli's letter. As suc~i, time under any scenario, is not yet of the essence.
Further, although not legally required, the Council should consider the pros and cons of using the
competitive Request for Proposals (RFP} process prior to consideration of any offer to .extend the
current contract with LAGCo. An RFP would most likely not be issued until early in 2010 to allow a
minimum of 6 months for the selection process and contract negotiations.
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There is no question that LAGCo's record of service and their performance has been consistently good
over the term of the current contract and their current proposal seeks to maintain a low garbage rate
which is an important consideration in continuing the contract. However, this contract is potentially
worth $10-15 Million to the successful provider over aten-year period. As such, to arbitrarily pre-empt
the open competition RFP process, even with demonstrably good reason, will likely bring criticism
within the solid waste industry in not allowing other vendors to compete for this very lucrative iong-
term contract.
Landfill Diversion Rate and Goal
Even a cursory review of the letter reveals an obvious omission in the proposal as there is no reference
whatsoever to an increased goal for the diversion of recycled products in general. The State
requirement goal for diversion of waste from the landfills is 50%. The City is currently diverting ~~vaste
in amounts up to 60%. Any new contract should seek to increase that goal dramatically. The City's
consultant reports that recent solid waste contracts set a goal of "the maximum diversion rate
possible", while expecting diversion rates of higher than 75%. At least three cities, under theiz new
contracts have reported diversion rates of at least 75% to the State. In any proposal, either through the
RFP process or a negotiated contract with LAGCo, similar goals should be included for the City of
Cupertino.
Staff Review and ]Evaluation /Recommendations to Council
This Letter and Proposal was sent directly to the sub-committee without a copy to the Staff. Staff
xeceived a copy of the letter on May 29, 2009, which given other demands including the budget
adoption process, did not allow sufficient time to thoroughly review and evaluate it, nor to be advised
after review by the City's Solid Waste Consultant, Richard Gertnian. Therefore, Staff is unable to
make knowledgeable and appropriate recommendations to the Council at this time.
If, after weighing the advantages and disadvantages of not pursuing a new contract by the RFP process,
the Council should elect not to use the competitive RPP process but, uzstead to consider an extension
of the current contract as proposed by Mr. Zirelli, Council should direct Staff to negotiate a new
contract. With Council direction, Staff would pursue as many additional services as possible to benefit
the City, rather than to just accept Mr. Zirelli's proposal without scrutiny and without a search for
further opportunities.
CONCLUSION
Since the current Solid Waste Services contract does not expire iuitil October 31, 2010, there is no
compelling or immediate need for the Council to take any action at this time. Staff recommends that
Council defer any action on the Solid Waste Services contract for a period of 90 days pending a
consideration of all pertinent information and a full report by Staff and the City's solid waste
consultant on available options and costs associated with a new Solid Waste Services contract.
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STAFF RECOMI«NDATION
Defer for 90 days any consideration of the letter from John Zirelli of Los Altos Garbage Company
(LAGCo) proposing additional collection services and expansion of recycling services for the City of
Cupertino in exchange fora 5 year extension and an additional five year option of the existing LAGCo
Solid Waste Services Contract with the City which will expire October 31, 2010.
Submitted by:
`~72_~ C~ c.t.. cc Cpl
Ralph A. Qualls, Jr.
Director of Public Works
Approved for submission:
~~
David W. Knapp
City Manager
EXHIBIT A -Letter from John Zirelli, General Manager
Los Altos Garbage Company
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J
EXHIBIT A
Peo~ile • Ser-uice • Environment
LOS ALTOS GARBAGE COMPANY
May 21, 2009
Mayor Orin Mahoney
Councilmember Gilbert Wong
Environmental Sub-Committee
City of Cupertino
10300 Torre Avenue
Cupertino, CA 95014-3202
RE: Expansion of the City of Cupertino Recycling Programs
Dear Mayor Mahoney and Councilmember Wong:
I would like to propose an expansion of the recycling services that Los Altos Garbage Company
(LAGCo) provides to the City of Cupertino at no additional cost to the residents, multi-family and
commercial businesses of Cupertino. While we are very proud of our continually high scores for
customer satisfaction, most reo~-rt survey results from November 2008 rating the LAGCo solid waste and
recycling services at extremely satisfied or satisfied at 95% and 94% ratings respectively, we can do
more.
Our quarterly "Environmer~kal Day" has been extrerr~ly successful, and we have received positive
feedback from the residents that utilize this program. We completed our third event on April 18, 2009.
This special col lection event has proven to be a wonderful opportunity for us to learn more about what
residents would like to see added to the services that we provide.
In order to help expand and support a sustainable living environment, recover and recycle more materials
that arse still going into the landfill, help residents to properly dispose of hazardous materials, and further
reduce greenhouse gasses, LAGCo would I ike to introduce the following recycling programs in the City
of Cupertino:
1) Residential Food Waste and Organics Collection
2) Commercial Food Waste and Organics Collection
3) Curbside Col lection of CFLs and Fluorescent Tubes
4) Curbside Collection of Household Hazardous Waste
5) Single~tream Recycling for all Multi-Family, Commercial and City Facility Accounts
Each of these programs is discussed in detail in the following paragraphs.
650 MARTIN AVENUE • SANTA CLARA, CA 95050 •'rELEPNONE {408) 588-7200 • FAX {408) 588-1102
Proud fo be Employee Owned
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PRIIJTED ON 100% RECYCLED PAPER
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1) Residential Food Waste and Organics Collection
Per the California Integrated Waste Management &~ard, food waste and food-soiled paper comprise
the largest portion of the residential waste strum, making up over 44°!0 of what residents throw away.
By providing a food waste and organics collection program, the City of Cupertino will be able to
reduce disposal tonnages. Our proposed residential food waste and organics collection program is
estimated to divert an additional 1,100 tons of material annually from the landfill. Keeping food waste
and organic material out of the landfil I reduces the ~~mount of methane produced, and methane is 23
times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
Each residential customer would receive a "Compact Kitchen Pail" to use for collection of their food
waste and organic material. Residents would then dump the contents of the Compost Kitchen Pail into
their existing yard waste container. The material wcFuld be collected by the current LAGCo yard
waste routes and brought to the Zanker Road prooetsing facility.
Material that wi I I be collected through the food waste and organics program are fruit, vegetables,
breads, cereal, dairy products, meat (including bones), coffee grounds and filters, tea bags, and food-
soiled paper, including paper towels, plates, napkin:> and pizza boxes.
LAGCo would implement an extensive outreach program through mailers, homeowners meetings,
service club presentations and the City of Cupertino access channel.
2) Commercial Food Waste and Organics Collection
In August 2007, the City Council approved a pilot commercial food waste and organics collection
program targeted at compactor customers. This pilot program has been a success, and we are
currently diverting 1,500 tons per year from Apple, HP, and Whole Foods. LAGCo, in partnership
with the City of Cupertino, implemented an additional pilot commercial food waste collection
program for the Cypress Hotel and Park Place Restaurant in August 2008. We are now collecting, on
average, 7 tons per month of organics in this programs.
We have identified 150 accounts within our commercial customer base that are high generators of
food waste and organic material LAGCo estimates that we can divert an additional 3,000 tons of
organic material annually through the expansion of ,~ commercial food waste program to these
customers.
Each business would receive one or more organics containers for the storage of their food waste and
organic material. In addition, LAGCo would supply each applicable business with "Slim Jim"
containers for the interior storage of organic materials that one generated in kitchens, cafeterias, and
lunch rooms. When these containers are full, the c~.~,tomer will empty them into the organic material
container that is serviced by a dedicated LAGCo commercial organics collection route.
LAGCo would implement the same type of outreackti program as mentioned above for the residential
food waste oral organics collection program. In addition, as we did with the Cypress Hotel and Park
Place Restaurant, we would meet with staff of commercial businesses and provide training for the
food waste and organics collection program.
3) Curbside Collection of CFLs Bulbs
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Los Altos Garbage Company could add the collection of CFLs bulbs to the current residential recycling
program. Customers would place CFLs in clear Ziploo-type bags next to their curbside recycling cart, and we
would collect the bags and pace them into a separate compartment on the regular recyclables collection truck.
All CFLs bulbs will be recycled through our E-waste/U-waste processor, AERC. We estimate that we will
collect 70,500 CFLs based on ~ estimated 5 items per household per year.
4} Curbside Collection of Household Hazardous Waste
Curbside Inc. is a company that specializes in residential curbside collection of household hazardous
waste (HHW). They are currently in disa,rssions with the South Bay Waste Management Authority
(SBWMA) to provide collection services to the cities throughout San Mateo County, and they have
expressed an interest in providing the same service`s and terms to the City of Cupertino. The cost of
the program is estimated to be $0.45 per month per household, based upon a defined maximum
participation rate. Their program includes a scheduled appointment collection through the Curbside
Inc. toll-free phone number. Residents receive a "kit" that describes the program and includes a
heavy bag for their use in collecting the HHW. Curbside, Inc. collects the contents of the kit bag plus
up to three automotive batteries and E-waste material. A copy of the Curbside lnc. proposal for the
City of Cupertino HHW curbside collection is included with this package.
5} Single-Stream Recycling for all Multi-Family, Commercial, and City Facility Accounts
Currently, LAGCo's multi-family, commercial, and City facility accounts in Cupertino recycle
utilizing source~eparated containers for newsprint and mixed paper, bottles and cans, and source-
separated cardboard. We estimate that an additional 700 tons of recycling material annually would be
generated through the conversion to single~tream recycling for multi-family, commercial, and City
facility accounts. In 2005, when we converted the single-family homes to singe-stream recycling,
recycling volumes increased 95-20%.
To maximize single~tream recycling for multi-family, commercial, and City facility accounts, Los
Altos Garbage Company would conduct a "Recycling Blitz" on the 500 accounts through the
utilization of experienced Recycling Coordinators from our other Norval operations. Each
representative would visit a minimum of 10 accounts per day and customize their single-stream
recycling program to meet their needs, based on an audt of their wastestr~n and cx~rrent recycling
volumes. In areas that have limited storage capacity, LAGCo will provide centrally located, "shared"
recycling containers for multiple customers to utilize.
Las Altos Garbage Company proposes to absorb the operating and capital costs of these programs
(excluding possible HHW collection costs} in exchange for ashort-term contract extension of five (5}
years and a five (5) year option to extend that would be mutually agreeable to both parties.
I ncluded as Attachment A is a comparison of solid waste rates of jurisdictions in Santa Clara County. As
the sdledule illustrates, Cupertino residential and commercial rates are among the lowest in Santa Clara
County.
Las Altos Garbage Company has enjoyed our successful partnership with the City, and with the residents
and businesses of Cupertino. We look forward to continuing to provide the excellent service and recycling
programs for the community, and strive to increase our satisfaction ratings on the next survey to exceed
the 94% and 95% 2008 levels.
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Please feel free to contact meat jzirell i@losaltosgarbage.oom or by telephone at 408-588-7224 if you
ham any questions.
Sinoer~ely,
Jol~ Zirelli
General Manager
Los Altos Garbage Company
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green`nraste
a brighter sf iade of green
July 6, 2009
Mayor Mahoney and Members of the City Council
City of Cupertino
10300 Torre Ave
Cupertino, CA 95014-3202
RE: Recycling and Waste Collection and Processing Services
Dear Mayor Mahoney and Honorable Members of the City Council:
GreenWaste Recovery, Inc. (GreenWaste) respectfully requests that the City of Cupertino:
1. Approve the Staff recommendation fora 90-day exi:ension of any decision on the existing franchise.
2. Direct the Staff to explore the steps necessary to authorize an RFP for Recycling and Waste Collection
and Processing Services, including conducting an industry outreach effort to determine the interest
among other providers to serve the City of Cuperi:ino as well as receiving information for surrounding
communities (e.g., the City of Palo Alto) relating to their experiences with the RFP process.
When other cities in the area have competitively bid their w~iste service contracts, they have been rewarded with
noticeably reduced rates, better customer service for their residents and/or significantly increased solid waste
diversion.
GreenWaste would like the opportunity to compete for Recycling and Waste Collection services for the City of
Cupertino. We believe our significant collection and processing services and increased waste diversion rates,
our capacity and new technologies, our costs and our highly-rated customer service would enhance service to
your residents. By undergoing a waste collection and recycling RFP process, the city would guarantee itself and
their residents the best possible rates and services available.
If selected, GreenWaste could offer the following advantages compared to other traditional waste service
companies:
_`''- Reach and maintain Zero Waste goals of at lea:~t 75% recovery.
_`''~ Offer innovate food waste and organics collection and processing services.
_`''~ Provide expanded commingled residential, multi -family and commercial recycling program.
_`''~ Proven innovation of transforming waste and debris into marketable end products.
_`''~ Furnish new vehicles, carts and commercial containers.
_`''~ Offer extensive community outreach program with focus on the multi-cultural se~ice recipients.
~`' % Local ownership of collection and processing companies.
_`'= Winner of SWANA 2009 Recycling System Golcl Excellence Award for the Multi-Family Recycling.
_"'- Proven track record with transitions from servicE~ provider to another.
GreenWaste can assist the City of Cupertino in achieving its Zero Waste goals by mt~cimizing resource recovery
and producing high quality recycled products, all at a competitive price. City materials would also be processed
though our new biogas facility that converts organics to a productive gas during the composting process.
GreenWaste Recovery, Inc., 1500 Berger Drive, San Jose, CA 95112 Main: 408.283.4804 Fax: 408.287.3108 www.greenwaste.com
Printed on recd-clad paper.
Since our inception in 1991, GreenWaste has providE~d exceptional and economical waste collection and
recycling services to multiple jurisdictions (including the Cities of San Jose, Petaluma, Scotts Valley, and
Capitola, the Towns of Woodside, Portola Valley, and l.os Altos Hills, and the Counties of Santa Clara and
Santa Cruz).
GreenWaste is committed to providing their exceptional ~~nd economical services to the City of Cupertino. To
that end, we have competed to win a large number of these contracts and have had significant experience in
transitbning into cities without any reduction in the level of customer service. to response to an official RFP,
GreenWaste can present its competitive pace, supen~~r customer service, collection experience, in-place
infrastructure, proven technology, and can-do attitude that sets us apart from other potential vendors.
GreenWaste has long been dedicated to devebping new technology and finding innovative ways to strike the
delicate balance between environmental sustainability rind economic feasibility in processing, recycling and
diverting materials away from landfills while maintaining a low cost structure and superior customer service.
As our company mantra says, we are committed to being "a brighter shade of green". We are also committed
to accountability to the leadership of the cities we serve ~rnd provide that accountability by having a substantial
local presence in the community including community participation in a number of ways, such as, direct
community support as well as participating in civic and cutlural affairs.
Cupertino has not had a competkive bid on its recycling and waste collection program for over 80 years. In
these difficult times for government, we believe and RFP will insure the City gets the best deal possible for the
term of next contract.
Sincerely,
_~
~~T
Frank Weigel
Chief Operating Officer
CC. Vice Mayor -Kris Wang
Council Member Gilbert Wong
Council Member Mark Santoro
Council Member Dotly Sandoval