The city will not explore private contracting of its garbage collection.
Council declined to support a motion by Coun. Cam MacKay to seek price quotes from private contractors. The city is rolling out a new waste collection program June 1 that will see city staff and equipment perform 100 per cent of garbage collection. The current system is a 50-50 split between in-house and private contracting. That contract expires this year.
MacKay feels it would be more cost effective to maintain at least partial privatization of garbage collection but the majority of council wanted the city to stay with its current course without exploring other options.
“One of the things I’ve never truly bought into is that contracting out is the saving grace in all cases,” said Coun. Wes Brodhead.
The previous council decided last June to pursue the current changes, which include the $1.5 million purchase of five automated garbage trucks. MacKay wanted the city to seek non-binding bids from the private sector to purchase the trucks and perform all or half of the city’s waste collection.
If the information revealed that privatization was a cheaper option, the city could proceed in that direction. Otherwise it would assure residents they’re getting the best deal, MacKay argued.
Coun. Cathy Heron commended MacKay for doing what he thought was best for residents, but declined to support his motion.
“What council needs to be comfortable with is that administration has done its due diligence on price and I am confident that you guys have done that over the last 18 months,” she said.
“What is important to me is that the start date not be delayed and if we accept this motion tonight I’m not one bit confident in that,” she added.
Coun. Malcolm Parker was the only one to vote along with MacKay. Parker said he feels the city is doing the right thing with its new waste collection program, but he didn’t see the harm in getting some private sector pricing.
“It was logical and common sense to go out to the marketplace and find out what the costs were, more for informational purposes than anything else,” he said.
Administration said the city had gotten favourable pricing for its trucks and said pursuing privatization of a public service could violate a collective agreement with its existing workers.
“Most importantly, there would be a significant potential for resident confusion as a result of any changes,” said a background report.
The new system will see households receive two plastic waste containers, one for organics and one for garbage. The city awarded the contract for the manufacture of new toters last week and expects to award the contract for organics collection this week, said public works director Glenn Tompolski.
The city has already agreed, with two separate contracts, to send its garbage and organic waste to the Roseridge facility east of Morinville. A private contractor will continue to perform blue bag pickup.
Mayor Nolan Crouse said he felt good with the program that’s in the works. He didn’t think getting price quotes was the right thing to do unless the city was committed to following through.
“We would have led potential contractors down the path of believing that they had a business opportunity and I think that would have been unfair,” he said.
MacKay said afterward that his idea had come “a little late in the game” but he still felt it was a good idea to get private pricing.
“There’s a lot of times where you’re right but you’re not going to win,” he said.
