From King Henry’s office comes this:
Fort Wayne, Ind. – The City of Fort Wayne has reached an agreement with National Serv-All to provide garbage and recycling collection services for 2010 at 2009 rates. National Serv-All’s current four-year contract with the City expires December 31, 2009. The proposed one-year deal, which requires approval by the Board of Works, would freeze rates at current levels, and calls for monthly meetings to improve service.
“This agreement is in the best interests of Fort Wayne residents,” said Mayor Tom Henry. “Citizens will not see their rates increase next year, and we have asked for provisions that will help improve service.”
Based upon the principle that open competition would best serve the needs of citizens, the City issued a Request for Proposals for garbage and recycling collection in July of this year. With a Request for Proposals (RFP), vendors must complete on price as well as performance factors. Five companies responded to the RFP. A proposal by Earth First was considered to be the lowest and most responsive. Because the company is a start-up, the City decided that further due diligence was warranted. In the meantime, National Serv-All challenged the process despite the fact that a Request for Proposals process was used to award National Serv-All its current contract.
The City’s use of the Request for Proposals process was based on a good faith interpretation of state law, a desire to open the process to competition, and an effort to assure citizens of the best price and performance. However, based on further research and opinion, it was prudently decided to spare citizens the risk and cost of potential litigation. Entering into a short-term agreement for garbage collection was determined to be the option that best served the interest of citizens and provided the lowest cost.
Walbridge is threatening to sue FWCS for the same reason. Now he can have two targets in his sights. One thing in Earth First’s proposal to the city that has not come up is the limits on the amount of trash you could place curbside. Earth First’s proposal would only allow you to fill one dumpster. If you had to place a few bags outside as well, you would have been required to go to the grocery store and “buy” stickers to place on them. Otherwise, they would not pick them up. Think about how that would sit during Christmas, Thanksgiving, Birthdays, etc. when you have extra trash. And what a financial windfall that would have been for Earth First.
The one-year agreement with National Serv-All allows the City to re-bid the garbage and recycling collection contract as early as July of 2010 (effective January 2011). The new bidding process will include a comprehensive review of the City’s solid waste operations; solicitation of public input regarding solid waste; and the development of updated bid specifications and contract terms that are consistent with the best practices of other municipalities. The City will also confer with experts in solid waste contracting to advise and assist in performing these activities.
“Without question, this was a difficult process,” Mayor Henry added. “However, by sticking to the principle of seeking competition as a means of providing citizens the best price and service, we’ve reached an agreement that not only saves money but ensures an even better bidding process in 2010.”
The one-year agreement between the City and National Serv-All will be sent to the Board of Works for its review during its regular meeting on October 14, 2009.
Now there’s really no need to follow-up with another story. For the better part of two weeks, 4-5 computers from Waste Management in Brampton, Ontario have been lurking around the site. Sorry WM, Earth First won’t be worth acquiring anytime soon.
They are attempting to get Whitley County’s trash contract. It will be interesting to see if this has any effect on the outcome over there.
Bod-a-Bing!
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Entries (RSS)
Looks like the Earth First ploy worked to force National Serv-All to capitulate. Thing to watch now is any resulting side deal between Serv-All and the Earth First transfer station. That’s where all the real money was to be made.
Dan… Sounds like its GOOD BYE to Earth First…would that be Bod-a-BOOM!!!! hehehe You sure do a GREAT JOB!!! AWB The New Fort Wayne SUPER SNOOPER!! Your new headline says it all…..Thank you!
What is wrong with a cleaner, more efficient, quieter, updated trash recycling collection service for Fort Wayne. I asked the city for a 48 gallon container, they delivered a 90 gallon. I put in this container at the most 1 grocery sack of garbage. I compost everything else. I also put out at the most 4 bins of recyclables. Natn’l Serv-All wakes me up at 5 in the morning clanging, and banging and flashing lights like nobodys business. They leave me trash goodies all over the street to pick up, and dispose of yet again. Most of the neighbors here will not recycle, or compost so they fill up 90 gallons plus, and have bags and bags of crap piled up on the curb. So charge me less!
Dan:
Earth First is not trying to get Whitley County’s trash. The research that I have done indicates that it is the recycling contract that is being put out as an RFP. I don’t beleive that your assertion about the trash outside the container is entirely correct. Do you have a copy of the RFP? If not, then this information may not be correct. Once a copy of the original RFP is available then the facts can be stated.
Perky,
The trash outside of the container information came directly from Gregg Walbridge’s mouth, on a radio interview yesterday on WBOI, 89.1 FM at noon with Ben Lanka from the Journal Gazette.
You are correct in that Whitley County is a recycling bid. I’m not sure on the trash component, but I will call over there tomorrow and let you know.
Dan:
I like, “Perky”. Now I reviewed a copy of that radio interview that you mentioned. Your are right about Gregg’s Walbridge’s comment. However if you look at the question that was asked of him there is a whole different meaning. Gregg was asked about a alternative proposal for, “limited trash pick-up”. I believe this was a proposal that the City was asking for and the answer that Mr. Walbidge gave was Earth First’s solution to the proposal requested by the City. I don’t think that was the main proposal for solid waste collection and disposal but an alternative requested by the City. The only reason I can think of for the City requesting this alternative proposal is to save money and/or have people that throw away more pay more.
I hope you enjoy paying higher taxes so we can spend $2 million plus a year on sub-par garbage pickup… Suckers!
You honestly think this is some kind of “victory”???
Fools and their money will soon be parted. I believe this is what is meant by the phrase, “Cutting off ones nose to spite ones face.”
“Ignorant” Fan,
You’re showing just how ignorant you are. We don’t pay taxes for trash removal. You must live in an apartment at Eden Green where they have apartment-provided dumpsters.
You pay for your trash removal on your city utility bill. You must not get one of those. Even then, the city is the one saving the money, and they sure as heck wouldn’t pass any savings realized to the residents. It would have ended up in Pat Rollers general fund for Henry & his cronies to use as they see fit. Maybe there’s another one-way street they want to blow $1.2 million on destroying for no apparent reason. Oh, but being a fan of local business I bet you’d support that. After all, we all know that Hipskind needs the money so they can give some of it back to Henry’s reelection campaign.
Go back to Fort Wayne Politics and bitch about something there. You obviously don’t have a clue as to what’s going on here.
And I’m wondering, which Henry family are you from?