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Published on 06/22/1998 All articles from this issue

Council rejects increase for debris boxes, asks for audit

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By Joanne Griffith Domingue / Town Crier Staff Writer

The Los Altos City Council is not ready to OK a rate increase for debris boxes, those Dumpster-like containers that sit in driveways during remodels and roof jobs.

At its June 23 meeting, the council rejected a request from the Los Altos Garbage Company to increase its debris-box rates anywhere from 9 to 42 percent, an average 32 percent increase. The council also requested an audit.

An audit "is a learning experience, a chance to improve the company," said Bill Jones, general manager of the garbage company, at the council meeting.

Following the meeting, the city staff contacted a consulting firm and asked for audit proposals "with a spectrum of services," said Bruce Bane, director of public works for Los Altos. These options will be presented to the council.

"This is an extremely important issue," said Councilman Lou Becker, who said he is looking for cost savings within the garbage company.

Councilman King Lear wondered about the way the garbage company allocated labor expenses among the residential, commercial and debris-box costs.

Mayor Kris Casto said her concern was with one group - the debris box customers - "subsidizing another."

Labor costs for the debris-box service are higher than for residential and commercial services because "the most expensive workers work the debris-box" jobs, Jones said. "It's the premium job at the company."

Currently the 16-yard box, the size used by 63 percent of the local debris-box customers, costs $275 in Los Altos. With that rate, Los Altos is the least expensive on the list of nine cities in a comparison chart provided by the garbage company.

Monte Sereno, at $453 for a 16-yard box, is the most expensive of the nine cities that include Saratoga, Campbell, Los Gatos, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, Mountain View and Cupertino.

The proposed new rate for Los Altos at $390, what Bane called "a market-rate increase," would put the city sixth of the nine cities.

That is the same rate recently approved by the county supervisors for the unincorporated part of Los Altos and Los Altos Hills, and the same rate charged residents of the town of Los Altos Hills, Lanser said.

Debris-box rates in Los Altos were last raised in July 1996.

Resident Bob Norton he'd like the council to "deregulate the debris box." With deregulation, citizens could call any licensed hauler in the area for a debris box.

Currently that is the case for residents in the unincorporated areas of Los Altos, said Michael Perry, a management analyst with the Santa Clara County integrated waste department.

But the city of Los Altos, in a contract that extends to the year 2012, has an exclusive franchise agreement with the garbage company, so residents must use that company.

But "you just amend the franchise agreement and take out the debris boxes," Bane said, if the council wants to consider deregulating the debris boxes.

Rich Lanser, regional financial manager for the garbage company, sees a downside for the city if they take that route.

"The city doesn't want to be the garbage police with boxes being set all over the place and fielding complaints," he said.

Currently the garbage company pays the city $85,888 in franchise fees for debris boxes, which is 10 percent of the gross revenue from the boxes.