The contract comes on the heels of action taken by the City Council this past summer to deal with the inefficiencies of the city’s trash operation — which has been an ongoing issue for several years.
City Hall’s solid waste balances have been decreasing to varying degrees over the last four years and needed to be corrected to keep the bonds that support the funds in legal compliance, according to officials.
In order to begin restoring the funds to a healthy level, the City Council in June adopted a rate schedule that increased the cost of solid waste rates by 10 percent citywide.
The rates are to be in effect at least this year, with staff and consultants to follow up and evaluate the costs and revenues for services that have prompted the city’s utility funds to be depleted by as much as $20 million.
City Hall will pay Gershman, Brickner & Bratton, Inc. $61,000 to evaluate the city’s budget for trash disposal, propose alternative ways of delivering solid waste and analyze the rates for trash pick-up.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 25, 2005. Read the original PDF.