Information Items:
HOV Lanes Kickoff on 1-77 North - Friday, December 17
Staff Resource: Olaf Kinard, 704-336-2275
The North Carolina Department of Transportation will be conducting a kickoff ceremony for the new HOV lanes on Friday, December 17, 2004 at 10:00 am. The event will be held at CATS' Huntersville-Gateway Park N' Ride lot. North Carolina Secretary of Transportation Lyndo Tippett will be on hand to open the state's first HOV lanes. Following the 10:00 am kickoff, Secretary Tippett and Mayor McCrory, along with local dignitaries, will take a tour of the new HOV lanes. CATS will have a bus scheduled to leave the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center at 9:00 am on the Davidson Street side, which will transport attendees to and from the event. To drive, take I-77 North to Exit 23, at the top of the ramp take a right and then a left at the first signal light. The Park N' Ride lot is 200 yards on the left.
Solid Waste Services Call and Send Program
Staff Resource: Wayman Pearson, 704-336-3410
Since rollout garbage service began in 1994, Solid Waste Services has collected unscheduled bulky items in several Charlotte neighborhoods. This service was provided as an added benefit for neighborhoods that consistently had high incidences of unscheduled bulky items. The service helped improve the appearance of the neighborhoods, but did not offer a solution to solving the underlying program - resident's lack of knowledge about the bulky item scheduling process. In an effort to address the underlying issue, Solid Waste Services developed the Call and Send Program (information about the program is attached).
In January 2004, Solid Waste implemented a pilot to test the Call and Send program in the Windsor Park neighborhood. The program was successful and will be implemented in Belmont, Lakewood, Plaza/Shamrock, and Washington Heights in January 2005.
Working in partnership with the neighborhood associations, Neighborhood Development Neighborhood Services and Neighborhood Development Code Enforcement, Solid Waste Services has hosted neighborhood leader training sessions and property owner and property management meetings in each targeted neighborhood. Additionally, neighborhoods are provided with brochures to distribute to residents, as needed, to educate them on how to schedule bulky items.
Solid Waste Services will work with each target neighborhood for a period of one year. At the one-year mark, Solid Waste Services, the neighborhood association and Neighborhood Development - Neighborhood Services will evaluate the success of the program. As significant progress is made in reducing unscheduled bulky items, Solid Waste will work to transition the neighborhood from the Call and Send program to using the weekly service as designed.
Charlotte Trolley Service Disruption
Staff Resource: Ron Tober, 704-336-7245
The Charlotte Business Journal is running a story this Friday, December 17, regarding Charlotte Trolley service during construction of the South Corridor Light Rail Line. It is likely for a period of time beginning late 2005, trolley service will be temporarily suspended while construction crews lay track for light rail. Service in the South End area could be affected for up to six months. Construction of light rail through the Charlotte Convention Center is more complex and requires more provisions; thus trolley service into Center City may be affected for a period of up to nine months.
CATS has searched for the best solution with the least impact to our trolley customers, businesses along the trolley line and Charlotte Trolley Inc. Disrupting service for a period of just a few months is more efficient for all involved, rather than starting and stopping service for a period of possibly 17 months. A brief shutdown of the trolley line allows crews to get the light rail track built in a shorter amount of time so trolley service may resume as construction moves on to another portion of the light rail line.
This information was previously reported in a WBTV report that aired on Friday, September 24, 2004.
Charlotte Arena Project Monthy Expenditures
Staff Resource: Jim Schumacher, 704-336-3656
Attached is the Monthly Arena Expenditure Report.
Rollout Container Lease Maintenance and Distribution Agreement Subcontractor Changes
Staff Resource: Wayman Pearson, 704-336-3410
The City has a contract with Otto Container Management, LLC ("Otto") for rollout container lease, maintenance and distribution service. This contract was originally awarded to Plastic Omnium Zarn, Inc. ("Zarn"). Zarn subsequently sold its American assets to Otto. As a result, Otto assumed Zarn's responsibilities under the original agreement. Under this contract, Zarn and Otto subcontracted with Ford Container Industries, Inc. ("FCI").
On November 29, 2004, Otto Container Management advised the City that it wished to terminate its subcontract with FCI. In their letter, Otto stated that FCI had failed "to meet all five contractual requirements with Otto Container Management [the contract's Description of Work] under their contract dated October 24, 2001." Otto had requested that FCI provide "requested information and verification as to Ford Container Industries' ability to meet their obligations under our [Otto's] contract." According to Otto, FCI did not provide that information. As Otto determined that FCI failed to meet their obligations under the contract, FCI defaulted under the contract. As FCI defaulted, Otto requested that the City consent to their replacement of FCI with another subcontractor, Hawk Sanitation and Recycling, Inc. ("Hawk").
Under the terms of the contract between the City and Otto, Otto can substitute a subcontractor with the City's consent. Any new subcontractor has to be approved by the City. The purpose of the contract clause giving the City the right to consent to substitution of a subcontractor is not to investigate the reasons behind a contractor's decision to replace a subcontractor. Rather, it is to make sure that the new subcontractor can meet the service level expected by the City under the contract. The City consented to the substitution of FCI with Hawk. While the contract between the City and Otto does not require the use of MWBEs or SBEs, Hawk is a City-certified MWBE and SBE.
