CC Minutes - 06/11/01 Work Session

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The council discussed the options prepared by staff for possible changes to the system. Mr. Fart thought open competition drove excellence in any market. He was strongly in favor of open competition. Regarding the issue of growing a business, he said that it was a major element of any business Success. Ms. Nathanson was not sure how she would vote at this point. She thought street deterioration only one of several factors, including aesthetics, that was involved. She was concerned about cost. It appeared the City had a higher cost than it would otherwise, which translated directly into the charge for the service. She said that it seemed like the vast majority of the cities surveyed had a more controlled environment for collection and had shifted from an open system to a single hauler system or to territories. She was very interested in controlling costs and thought from the experience of other cities that a different system was better. Ms. Nathanson acknowledged that the politics of the situation might dictate the status quo as more acceptable to the community. However, she did not want to think that she had abandoned an opportunity to save the citizens money. Mr. Meisner also did not know what option he would support. He shared Ms. Nathanson's concerns about cost and livability and the impact on neighborhoods from residential haulers. While the road deterioration might not be significant in the array of costs, it was the only cost the City itself had to pay. He noted that some of those who called for choice had also said they were tired of having different trucks on their streets on different days. Mr. Meisner said that he would like to start the process of moving toward a geographic franchise arrangement that could include the potential of increased business growth. He was unsure of how to accomplish that, but suggested shorter license periods was a start. Ms. Bettman strongly favored the status quo with modifications to address Mr. Kelly's concerns. She had not heard any complaints about trucks on the streets, but had heard people wanted to retain their choice of haulers. She was concerned that exclusive territories and franchises would result in consolidation of territories with perhaps lower costs but also with less and less service because of fewer haulers. Mr. Rayor said he was also leaning toward a modified status quo, but tended to agree with the remarks of Ms. Nathanson and Mr. Meisner. If the City moved toward a franchise system, he would prefer territories with fuzzy borders that could shift if a hauler could get the majority of the business on the street adjacent to its territories. He said that he was not ready to move in that direction because he did not think the council had a range of options that gave ratepayers the desired savings while allowing the haulers to be entrepreneurial. Mr. Rayor recommended that staff continue to meet with the haulers to discuss the issue. He did not think the council's vote tonight was the last word on the subject, particularly if energy costs increased. Ms. Taylor said that she had changed her mind over time and now favored the status quo. She agreed with Mr. Rayor that discussion on the subject was not closed. Mr. Kelly said that he shared Ms. Taylor's position. He had previously favored a territorial system but discussion with citizens and haulers had changed his mind. He said he was struck by a comment made by a hauler that a move toward exclusive territories with service agreements would create a situation where haulers worked toward the agreement and its penalty schedule rather than toward better customer service. Mr. Kelly further noted that the survey responses indicated that citizens supported franchise service only if it were $5 cheaper. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 11, 2001 Page 7 Work Session