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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-06-14 MINUTES'rtEQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM # e DATE 09/01/04 � " 7 • � PREPARED BY: Public Works Les Burshten ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT STAFF AUTHOR ..����.�<..,.....,.�.��.�..�.�....�....�..�.�.�., COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST: Accept and place on file the minutes of the June 14, 2004 meeting of the Public Works Commission. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Approve the June 14, 2004 minutes of the Public Works Commission. BUDGET IMPLICATION: $ BUDGETED AMOUNT ADVISORY COMMISSION ACTION: DATE ❑ PLANNING ❑ PUBLIC SAFETY � PUBLIC WORKS ❑ PARKS AND RECREATION ❑ HUMAN SERVICES/RIGHTS ❑ ECONOMIC DEV. AUTHORITY ❑ SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS: 8/9/04 $ ACTUAL AMOUNT FUNDING SOURCE REVIEWED ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ APPROVED ❑ ❑ � ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ DENIED ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ MEMO/LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: � OTHER: Approved minutes of Public Works Commission ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS: meeting on June 14, 2004 Administrator /Uy Date " ....,....�...��.�.�..�.��..��,..�,.�,.....�....<,. COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: 0 APPROVED ❑ DENIED ❑ OTHER CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE PUBLIC WORKS COMMISSION June 14, 2004 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a meeting of the Public Works Commission of Cottage Grove was duly held at the Public Works Training Room, 8635 West Point Douglas Road, Cottage Grove, Minnesota, on June 14, 2004 at 7:00 pm. 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Ken Boyden called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. 2. ROLL CALL David Anderson, Ken Boyden, Robert Dornsbach, Randy Eckstein, Roger Finnegan, Gary Kjellberg Staff Present: Les Burshten, Public Works Director Allan Larson, Public Works Technician Brian Voelker, ManagementAnalyst Corrine Thomson, City Attorney Also Present: Sandy Shiely, Mayor Jim Wolcott, City Council Member Jeff Podoll, City of Cottage Grove Gary Boyum, Wasfe Management Richard Owens, B.F.1. Waste Services Rich Hirstein, B.F.I. Waste Services Mayo Rude, Onyx Waste Services Troy Tennis, Tennis Brothers Sanitation Jesse Tennis, Tennis Brothers Sanitation Willie Tennis, Tennis Sanitation Greg Tennis, Tennis Sanitation Brian Hagen, Tennis Sanitation Excused: David Thiede 3. APPROVE MINUTES Upon a motion by Gary Kjeliberg, seconded by Randy Eckstein, the May 10, 2004 minutes were approved unanimously. Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 2 4. ADDITIONAL AGENDA ITEMS - None 5. NEW BUSINESS A. Solid Waste Disposal Presentation — Brian Voelker Public Works Management Analyst, Brian Voelker, explained that the Mayor and Council requested the Public Works Commission discuss the possibility of adding a fourth licensed hauler to serve Cottage Grove residential areas. History of Solid Waste Ordinance . The Solid Waste Commission reduced the list of thirteen trash haulers to three . In 1999, Aagard Sanitation was purchased by Waste Management, eliminating the third waste hauler license . From 2000 to 2004, the third license slot remained open . On July 16, 2003, the City Council authorized minor changes to the Mixed Solid Waste and Recycling Ordinance . On January 21, 2004, Council authorized the issuance of a residential solid waste license to Tennis Brothers Sanitation Current City Code and Interpretation • Under Cottage Grove City Code, Title 4-2-6, no more than three (3) residential dwelling solid waste licenses shall be issued at any one time . Title 4-2-6B states: a subsidiary or related organization obtain a license if it is to operate in the City of Cottage Grove • Title 4-2-6F3b of the City Code states that recycling can be subcontracted with a licensed entity. A memo dated January 8, 2004 indicates that the City of Cottage Grove understands the ordinance to state that to qualify for a new residential license, an applicant must have not less than 200 active accounts. The city attorney reviewed the ordinance and disagreed, stating that the licensee would have to provide the City proof that they have at least 200 active accounts by their renewal date. Current Conditions From 2000 to 2003, there were two residential license holders: 1. Tennis Sanitation, LLC 2. Waste Management-Hastings Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 3 As of May 27, 2003, there are three residential license holders: Tennis Sanitation LLC (urban) Tennis Brothers Sanitation — (rural) Waste Management (both urban and rural) Options for the City to consider: 2. 3. 4. Chanqe ordinance to allow an additional license A. May create more competition B. May encourage lower prices Citv-operated solid waste and recvclinq pick-uo A. City provide solid waste and recycling billing services — 1 or more haulers 1.:... ___i___a ....� ....I:.1 ..,..�i� .nnrl rorvrlinn .,irk� �n _ 1 nr mnra haulers CitV to do all solid waste and recvclinq haulinq A. This option will require capital and personnel investment In order to reduce truck traffic on City streets: City can contract out with 1 solid waste hauler and 1 recycling hauler (2 trucks total per street maximum) City can leave as is and contract out with 1 recycling hauler (3 trucks total per street maximum) Leave as is —(Residents will have two options for trash removal) Commission Member Gary Kjellberg inquired whether citizens' needs are being met by the current haulers. Voelker responded that yes, at this time they are being served noting the City has not received complaints regarding poor service, however, added that residents would likely call the hauler rather than the City if they had a concern. Commission Chair Ken Boyden questioned what situation generated this meeting? Public Works Director Burshten explained there was a discussion at the Council level to look at the option of adding a fourth hauler. At this time Mayor Sandy Shiely requested to explain why she wished the commission to review the issue of allowing an additional hauler. Mayor Shiely explained that several years ago, Cottage Grove had "open hauling" policy that involved many more haulers than allowed now. The Public Works Solid Waste Commission was set up to look at this issue due to the increased truck traffic on roadways. She indicated that earlier today she spoke to a member of this task force in order to receive additional background information. Jeff Podoll, chairman of that Solid Waste Task Force, was also present at tonighYs meeting. It was explained that the following criteria was considered by members of that task force: Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 4 Reasoning to cut fhe haulers from 13 to 3: . Less truck damage to roadways . Three haulers would still offer a choice for citizens and competition would lower prices. Since 2000, three licenses have been available, but only two have been issued and Shiely states she's been asking the question since 2000, "Why isn't that third license filled?" Shiely recently discovered that during that time, at least two haulers were turned down from obtaining that third license because they were told they would have to have 200 active accounts before they would be considered. It is believed this was a mis-reading or misunderstanding of the ordinance as it stood. At this time Jeff Podoll indicated that the committee did, in fact, intend for the ordinance to indicate that the hauler must have 200 active accounts. Shiely went on to state that when the council voted to allow Tennis Brothers Sanitation the third license, other haulers had legitimate questions why Tennis was allowed and they were not. Shiely stated that Tennis was allowed to expand its business due to their good track record in the City, along with their good service. Further, Mayor Shiely indicated that when Tennis was given the third license, the door was closed on having three hauling options for our taxpayers. Her idea of providing a fourth license was based wholly on that premise — people should have at least three options which was the original intent of the Solid Waste Task Force. The second criteria for narrowing the trash haulers to three was damage to the roads. With the three licenses currently in use, the number of trucks has remained the same since 2000. When Tennis came to the commission in order to obtain that third license, they indicated that it would not increase the number of trucks on the road. With a fourth license, truck traffic will be the same as it would have been had that third license been filled during that period. Another hauler would simply create the same scenario that would have been if BFI or Onyx had been allowed to bid on that third license that has been available since 2000. Perhaps the fourth license will go unfilled as it has in the last four years. Why would that be? Because a hauler in the City has to meet our expectations for service, use proper recycling facilities and meet guidelines of our expectations. Any hauler not fulfilling these needs should not be allowed to haul in our City. Mayor Shiely stated she takes complete responsibility for the suggestion of the fourth hauler and quite frankly, she's amazed there would be any objections because she doesn't see how this would increase truck traffic. A fourth hauler allows our citizens to have at least three choices and residents will benefit from the competition. Additionally she feels it compensates for the ordinance misunderstanding that has taken place over Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 5 the past four years. Shiely feels this is the right thing to do and if the Public Works Commission and/or the Council decides to not grant the fourth license, she will respect that decision. In conclusion, she thanked the commission for their time tonight. Jeff Podoll stated the ordinance is working exactly as it was planned in 1988. The task force decided they wanted to limit the number of trucks on City streets and worked with legal counsel to work out what they felt was a fair and equitable ordinance. The haulers already in place at the time could stay if they chose to. As haulers dropped out, licenses dropped out with them. Recycling was the initial focus of the task force since it was mandated by Washington County that the City must have a recycling program. Podoll added that during the past ten years, $20 million has been spent to rebuild Cottage Grove streets. Boyden stated he understands the ordinance to mean that in the event a larger hauler buys out a smaller hauler, that hauler would obtain those customers and therefore, have enough customers to obtain a license. Podoll agreed that this was the way the ordinance was intended to be interpreted. Boyden stressed the importance of limiting the number of vehicles, the weight of those vehicles, and the number of trips, all of which contribute to infrastructure damage. Podoll commented that if there was a monopoly of the two current haulers driving prices way up and doing injustice to the system, he can understand the need for competition and lower prices. It was noted that this is not the case. Commission Member Robert Dornsbach stated that if everything is working fine, why go into a big ruckus and change? Boyden agreed, stating the City does not have an obligation to the haulers, but feels the haulers have an obligation to the City to provide good service. Boyden concluded that he feels his responsibility on this commission is to consider costs of road repair and prevent road damage if possible. Commission Member David Anderson had a question about BFI requesting to apply for the third hauler license. He indicated that he didn't recall this information being discussed by this commission and was wondering when this would have taken place? Boyden responded that this commission never did discuss this and that due to a misleading situation at City Hall, the information was not referred to the Public Works Commission. B.F.I. had been told by City Hall staff that the license was not currently available. Commission Member Randy Eckstein requested to find out what procedure was followed when haulers inquired about obtaining a license. He was wondering if information given from City Hall shied trash haulers away from applying because they understood they were to have 200 active accounts right off the bat. At this time Mr. Mayo Rude, General Manager for Onyx Waste Services (Newport), asked to speak to this issue. He stated he was one of the haulers who attempted to obtain a trash hauler license from the City. He indicated that the first time he applied was in the summer of 2001 and he was told that he needed the 200 active accounts. Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 6 In 2002, he was given information that the third slot was available, however, was not going to be filled and added that they were not provided with an application. Boyden asked to whom Mr. Rude spoke with at City Hall and Rude responded that Caron Stransky was one of the individuals, and the other time he spoke to a gentleman, however did not recall his name. Mr. Rude went on to state he was very surprised when he saw an article in the South Washington County Bulletin, which stated the third license had been provided to Tennis Brothers. Richard Owens of B.F.I. stated their company sent letter and telephone inquiries to the City regarding obtaining the hauler license back in 1999, as soon as it became available and received the same response that was given to Onyx Services. At this time Chair Ken Boyden asked the Commission how they wished to address this issue. Boyden commented it was very honorable of Mayor Shiely to attempt to correct the situation if there was an error by City staff. However, Boyden does not see the need for adding the fourth license indicating he still feels his obligation is to look out for the citizens of Cottage Grove and will try to avoid any possible street damage due to more trucks on the roadway. Commission Member Gary Kjellberg concurred with Chairman Boyden and doesn't think iYs worth the risk of possibly damaging the streets by issuing another license to an additional trash hauler. David Anderson commented that when the commission first met and agreed upon the three-license capacity, obviously the goal was to have three different haulers to serve the City. And the way he sees it, Tennis Brothers serves the rural area and Tennis Sanitation serves city residents, and additional trucks are not being used. Podoll responded that three was a random number. From a citizen's standpoint, he thinks it would be fine if there were just one hauler. Three haulers would be enough to provide somewhat of a choice for residents. Randy Eckstein al�o agreed with the assessment that the Commission is here to do the best job they can for City residents. He added he has not seen any letters to the editor of the newspaper asking why there are only two haulers. He added if he saw more information or phone calls indicating a large number of people wanted another hauler, he may be convinced to add a fourth. At this time he agreed he would prefer to leave things as they are. Commission Member Roger Finnegan also concurred, stating if you open the door to adding more haulers, the situation may once again get out of hand. Rich Hirstein, B.F.I., spoke at this time and stated he's concerned that citizens are not able to even obtain a price from another hauler, indicating he has employees living in Cottage Grove who state that trash hauler prices are a bit more expensive here. They wish for a fair opportunity to seek the license. Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 7 MOTION MADE BY KEN BOYDEN, SECONDED BY GARY KJELLBERG, TO DENY THE REQUEST TO ADD A FOURTH TRASH HAULER TO SERVE THE CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE. MOTION WAS UNANIMOUSLY CARRIED. David Anderson requested that the next time the City conducts a survey, perhaps the following questions could be asked of residents: 1. "Do you feel the sanitation service is acceptable?" 2. "Do you feel the need for another trash hauler?" B. Single Sort Recycling — Brian Voelker Single Sort Recycling Definition: Accumulation of all recyclables in one 90 or 64 or 32- gallon container, with lid. Voelker explained the City of Cottage Grove recently received a request from Waste Management asking the City to consider single sort recycling and additionally, requesting a bi-weekly recycling pickup rather than weekly. Current System: . Each solid waste hauler is required to pick up recycling on a weekly basis . Each hauler determines how customers sort their recyclables . Tennis Sanitation and Tennis Brothers require customers to separate all targeted recyclables into individual brown paper bags and items are hand sorted at a recycling center or on the recycling truck. Waste Management does not require their customers to separate targeted recyclables and are currently using a single-sort system. Other metro area cities currently using single sort include: Hastings, Brooklyn Park, Coon Rapids, Bloomington, Burnsville, Eagan, and others totaling 19. Voelker went on to state that a few cities provided him with information evaluating single-sort recycling. Brooklyn Park and Hastings, which have had a longer experience with single-sort, both indicated they are pleased with the system. Advantages of Single-Sort Recycling: . Ease of sorting . Reduction in litter . Traffic reduction — truck traffic in neighborhoods is reduced with the biweekly pickup • Saves money — WM provides the bins instead of the City . Wheeled carts — these may be easier for some residents to handle. Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 8 Disadvantages of Single-Sort Recycling: . Larger bin must be stored . Customers might question whether materials are recycled . Bi-weekly, rather than weekly service may cause possible missed service pickup . Not all glass is recycled It was suggested that if single-sort recycling is approved, Waste Management would be required to educate the public about this process and how it works. At this time Gary Boyum of Waste Management reported statistics indicating that figures obtained from the City of Blaine illustrated an increase in recycling. He added that if residents recycled more, especially here in Washington County, the tonnage of trash will be reduced. Boyden is concerned should the recycling pickup occur bi-weekly, residents may become confused. Boyum stated Waste Management provides a calendar to customers indicating when recycling is picked up. Kjellberg inquired should single-sort recycling be approved, would it be possible to implement temporarily? At this time Mayor Shiely commented that the City of Woodbury is trying out the program on a trial basis for one year. MOTION MADE BY GARY KJELLBERG, SECONDED BY RANDY ECKSTEIN, TO IMPLEMENT SINGLE SORT RECYCLING BY WASTE MANAGEMENT FOR THE PERIOD OF ONE YEAR, UPON WHICH TIME THE PROGRAM WILL BE REVIEWED. MOTION WAS CARRIED BY A MAJORITY VOTE. 6. OLD BUSINESS None 7. PUBLIC WORKS UPDATE Les Burshten reported: . Sealcoating will begin tomorrow . The city pool is up and running and things are going well with the YMCA operation . Well #11 work is continuing . Parks are all open with some tournaments taking place. The City is receiving many compliments on the great condition of the grass and fields. . Tree Mitigation, Phase 1, has begun on Hardwood Avenue and Water Tower Park . The Prairie Island Disaster Response Training Session Drill will take place tomorrow at Public Works Public Works Commission June 14, 2004 — Page 9 Brian Voelker added that equipment and vehicles are being auctioned this week via sealed bids (ad appeared in the South Washington County Bulletin) 8. EAST RAVINE UPDATE No new information. Another informational meeting is being planned. 9. CITY COUNCIL REPORT No additional information. 10. ENGINEER'S REPORT No additional information 11. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND REQUESTS None 12. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn was made by David Anderson, seconded by Robert Dornsbach. Motion was unanimously carried. Meeting adjourned at 8:26 pm. Respectfully submitted, �atri,ci.w StarlTy