CITY OF VANCOUVER

REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

CITY SERVICES AND BUDGETS

NOVEMBER 6, 1997

A Regular Meeting of the Council of the City of Vancouver was held on Thursday, November 6, 1997, at 11:50 a.m., in Committee Room No. 1, Third Floor, City Hall, following the Standing Committee on City Services and Budgets meeting, to consider the recommendations of the Committee.

PRESENT: Deputy Mayor Jennifer Clarke

Councillor Don Bellamy

Councillor Alan Herbert

Councillor Daniel Lee

Councillor Don Lee

Councillor Gordon Price

Councillor George Puil

Councillor Sam Sullivan

ABSENT: Mayor Philip Owen (Leave of Absence)

Councillor Nancy A. Chiavario (Leave of Absence)

Councillor Lynne Kennedy (Leave of Absence)

CITY MANAGER'S

OFFICE: Ken Dobell, City Manager

CLERK TO THE

COUNCIL: Tarja Tuominen

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Cllr. Puil,

SECONDED by Cllr. Bellamy,

THAT this Council resolve itself into Committee of the Whole, Deputy Mayor Clarke in the chair.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Report of Standing Committee on City Services and Budgets

November 6, 1997

Council considered the recommendations of the Committee, as contained in the following clauses of the attached report:

Cl.1: City Solid Waste Container Services

Cl.2: 1998 Budget Projections

City Solid Waste Container Services

(Clause 1)

MOVED by Cllr. Puil,

THAT the recommendations of the Committee, as contained in Clause 1 of this report, be approved.

- CARRIED

(Councillors Chiavario, Herbert and Price opposed)

1998 Budget Projections

(Clause 2)

MOVED by Cllr. Puil,

THAT the recommendation of the Committee, as contained in Clause 2 of this report, be approved.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

RISE FROM COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Cllr. Puil,

THAT the Committee of the Whole rise and report.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

ADOPT REPORT OF COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Cllr. Puil,

SECONDED by Cllr. Bellamy,

THAT the report of the Committee of the Whole be adopted.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

The Council adjourned at 11:55 a.m.

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REPORT TO COUNCIL

STANDING COMMITTEE OF COUNCIL

ON CITY SERVICES AND BUDGETS

NOVEMBER 6, 1997

A Regular Meeting of the Standing Committee of Council on City Services and Budgets was held on Thursday, November 6, 1997 at 9:30 a.m., in Committee Room No. 1, Third Floor, City Hall.

PRESENT: Councillor George Puil, Chair

Councillor Don Bellamy

Councillor Nancy A. Chiavario (Item 1)

Councillor Jennifer Clarke

Councillor Alan Herbert

Councillor Daniel Lee

Councillor Don Lee

Councillor Gordon Price

Councillor Sam Sullivan

ABSENT: Mayor Owen (Leave of Absence)

Councillor Lynne Kennedy (Leave of Absence)

CITY MANAGER'S

OFFICE: Ken Dobell, City Manager

CLERK TO THE

COMMITTEE: Tarja Tuominen

RECOMMENDATION

1. City Solid Waste Container Services File: 3756

The Committee had before it a Policy Report dated October 22, 1997 (on file) in which the General Manager of Engineering Services recommended the discontinuance of the City's Solid Waste Container Operation, effective January 1, 1998. The General Manager also sought authorization to dispose of the assets of the Container Operation.

Dave Rudberg, General Manager of Engineering Services, provided a brief background to the report. The City has been in the Solid Waste Container service for a number of years. It is a profitable business and the employees have given good service to the public. However, with the upcoming change to a user pay system under the Solid Waste Utility, strata/co-op properties will no longer receive subsidized container pick-up and the City will be providing the service at the same cost as private companies. Five or six private companies are in position to provide competitive services. With the recent job action, the City lost a number of customers in the commercial area, its service image was damaged, and it lost valuable time to make the necessary productivity changes to the operation. Mr. Rudberg does not believe the service will make or lose a lot of money; he believes it will be a marginal operation. It will be better to invest the time and money into core functions. He recommends to discontinue the service and dispose of the equipment. There will be no loss of full-time employees; the only impact will be on temporary, part-time employees. If the City wants to minimize its losses and investment, the equipment should be disposed of now while the assets have the greatest value.

Ken Davidson, President, CUPE 1004, introduced David Fairey, Director, Trade Union Research Bureau (brief filed), who advised the report before the Committee was a hastily prepared and fundamentally flawed one:

·400·The operation has consistently generated substantial profits for the past eight years;·400

·400·it has demonstrated dramatic productivity increases;·400

·400·it is virtually guaranteed to continue to generate increasing revenue into the foreseeable future with the long overdue investment in new equipment, modest operational change and a marketing strategy; ·400

·400·currently, one U.S. conglomerate now controls 54% of the Vancouver container market and has dominant market power position, significantly reducing competition;·400

·400·since the strike, the strata/co-op residential customer base has been virtually restored to its pre-strike level, showing there is strong customer loyalty for City service;·400

cont'd

Clause No. 1 (cont'd)

·400·the projections of the personnel implications of discontinuance of container operations are not truthful or accurate.·400

Howard Norman, President, City of Vancouver Foremen's Association, introduced Les Tracy, Sanitation Foreman with the Solid Waste Container Services (brief filed), who responded to the report before the Committee:

·400·the City's presence in the market, the dedication of the employees, and surplus revenues all benefit the taxpayers of the City of Vancouver;·400

·400·the City's container customers are very satisfied with the service provided; the last civic strike resulted in a 2.9% loss of customers;·400

·400·the City is seen as a moderator of pricing with the Lower Mainland; if the City exits the business, there is the possibility of an overall increase in pricing;·400

·400·improvements in dumps per truck hour, reduction in weight per yard, massive increases in total volume are a reflection of the pride and dedication of the workers;·400

·400·the City Container Operation can continue to provide excellent service to the public and return excess revenues to the tax pool.·400

Rock Appleton, President, Waste Management Association, advised:

·400·there are several waste companies that provide similar competitive services now provided by the City; two are large multi-national firms, with six or more medium to small private haulers and recycling companies competing for business;·400

·400·the private companies will offer services at comparable rates to the City's; ·400

During discussion, several members of the Committee supported the City's presence in the Solid Waste Container business to assist in keeping the market competitive. It was also suggested it was important for the City to maintain its presence in the transition to the Solid Waste utility. Concern was also expressed with ending the service by January 1, 1998 as it does not give customers much notice.

The following motion by Councillor Bellamy was put and carried. The Committee, therefore,

RECOMMENDED

A.THAT Council approve the discontinuance of the City's Solid Waste Container Operation, effective February 1, 1998.

cont'd

Clause No. 1 (cont'd)

B.THAT the General Manager of Engineering Services be authorized to dispose of the assets of the Container Operation.

- CARRIED

(Councillors Chiavario, Herbert and Price opposed)

(Councillor Clarke not present for the vote)

2. 1998 Budget Projections

Ken Bayne, Comptroller of Budgets & Research, with the aid of slides and a hand-out (on file), presented an overview of, and responded to questions on, the 1998 operating budget projections. The projections are based on the 1997 budget, with adjustments for known changes and general inflation. Mr. Bayne also provided projections on where the City would expect to be at the end of the 1998 budget process. At this stage in the budget process, the tax increase forecast for 1998 is projected at 4.1% and for 1999 at 2.8%.

The following motion by Councillor Bellamy was put and carried. The Committee, therefore,

RECOMMENDED

THAT the report on the City of Vancouver 1998 Budget projections be received for information.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

The Council adjourned at 11:50 a.m.

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(c) 1997 City of Vancouver