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# City Hall to dump $1M into cleaning up town
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/city-hall-to-dump-1m-into-cleaning-up-town/
- Published: 2004-04-13T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T04:12:50.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Government & Politics, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Homicide reward, garbage trucks on politicians’ minds*

*By Daily Press staff*

COUNCIL CHAMBERS — Close to $1 million will be spent tonight by local politicians on everything from new garbage trucks to environmentally friendly cleaning products.

The Santa Monica City Council is expected to approve nearly three quarters of a million dollars for four garbage trucks to replace ones that are nearly trashed. Two compressed natural gas “rear loaders” will replace a 1991 model and a 1992 model, which city staff say are no longer cost effective to maintain. Two more compressed natural gas “front loaders” will replace two (Editor’s note: This is part of an ongoing series that tracks the city’s expenditures, which appear on the upcoming Santa Monica City Council consent agenda. Consent agenda items are routinely passed by the City Council with little or no discussion from elected officials or the public. However, many of the items have been part of public discussion in the past). 1992 models. Garbage trucks are the most heavily used vehicles in City Hall’s fleet, officials say. City Hall documentation regarding the vehicles doesn’t indicate whether the new models are quieter than the old ones.

Custodian-tested cleaning products that are friendly to the environment will cost City Hall $125,000\. The purchase of such products are in line with city officials’ desire to be as sensitive as they can to the environment. In 1993, the city became one of the first local governments to develop custodial cleaning product policies that include environmental and human health criteria. As part of the program, City Hall purchases cleaning products that are biodegradable, low in volatile organic compounds, free of carcinogens, reproductive toxicants and other toxic chemicals.

After City Hall solicited bids, the products were tested by custodians for performance, and the companies for their dispensing equipment, training, reliable service and knowledgeable local support. City Hall also hired a consultant to oversee the project. City Hall staffers have determined that Royal Paper satisfactorily met the tests.

The City Council has been asked to find $25,000 in one-time funds to offer as a reward for the arrest and conviction of the suspect or suspects responsible for killing 19-year-old Jalonnie Carter last September. On Sept. 2, Carter was shot in the back in an alley east of 20th Street. Santa Monica Police had arrested a man whom detectives believed killed Carter, but he was later released after prosecutors determined there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute him. The incident was Santa Monica’s only homicide last year.

Another $20,763 will be spent annually on a fiber optic network for City Hall, the local school district and Santa Monica College. In 2002, City Hall contracted with Adelphia Communications Corp. to lease the network, which provides high band-width communications for support of voice, data and video applications. Forty-three buildings have been connected with the network, including 24 for the city, 13 for the school district and six for SMC facilities. The objective is to secure emergency communications between the three agencies and reduce utility costs, city staff said.

The network construction has been paid for by City Hall, but costs for equipment, maintenance and operations of the system will be shared by all three agencies, city staff said. The ongoing annual cost for the system is $37,200, of which City Hall will pay $20,763, $11,247 for the school district and $5,191 for SMC.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 13, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/041304.pdf?ref=smdp.com)