City Council considers giving consent to items
By GERRY SHIH Special to the Daily Press
(Editor’s note: This story is part of an ongoing series that tracks the city’s expenditures appearing on upcoming Santa Monica City Council consent agendas. Many of the items have been part of public discussion in the past.) CITY HALL If the adage that it pays to advertise is true, then City Council should be in good shape after tonight.
The council is expected to dole out more than $331,000 from the 2007-08 budget at tonight’s meeting. The biggest winner appears to be J. Perez Associates, a local advertising firm that could potentially land a roughly $1.06 million, five-year contract to maintain advertisements on city buses.
Washington lobbyist The Ferguson Company, as well as the Santa Monica Daily Press, are also set to land city contracts tonight.
THREE DEALS At a cost of $199,704 for 2007-08 — the first year of the contract — J. Perez Associates will maintain and update the exterior and interior ads on all Big Blue Buses, including maps, schedules, and newsletters. The contract is set for a three-year period at roughly $200,000 per year, and the city keeps the option of two additional one-year renewals.
The amount paid yearly to J. Perez would represent around one-eighth of the $1.6 million the city collects annually in advertising revenue from the buses, according to figures given by a City Hall.
Council’s attempt to maintain a lobbying presence in the nation’s capital next year will cost $72,557.
The Ferguson Group has represented Santa Monica since 1994, and monitors federal proposals, legislation, regulation and Congressional appropriation on behalf of the city, according to a City Hall memo by Kathryn Vernez, assistant to the city manager. Relying on Ferguson’s considerable history with Santa Monica and its “in-depth knowledge of city policy objectives,” Vernez’s memo did not recommend a com- SEE CONSENT PAGE 12 petitive selection or consider any alternatives to The Ferguson Group.
The city will likely resume its usual contracting policy shortly, as City Hall staff recommended a competitive process for next year’s lobbyist selection.
Also, the Santa Monica Daily Press was selected over the Observer newspaper to publish the city’s legal notices, based on the following criteria: Proof of adjudication within Santa Monica, the advertising rate of the newspaper, circulation, delivery methods, publication schedule, percentage of local news carried, fiscal integrity and local reputation. Despite a higher rate per column inches, the daily publication schedule and greater readership of the Daily Press moved city staff to award the bid, according to City Attorney Marsha Moutrie.
The Los Angeles Times was not established within Santa Monica and, therefore, ruled out. The city is expected to pay the Daily Press $59,373 for publishing legal notices in fiscal year 2007-08.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 28, 2007. Read the original PDF.