A resolution to authorize a new trash service contract with CARDS Inc. failed 5-2 in a special Pine Bluff City Council on Thursday night.
Council members expressed significant concerns about the lack of available information regarding the proposed contract and lingering questions about both bidding companies, CARDS and incumbent WM, also known as Waste Management.
Voting in favor of the resolution were Glen Brown Jr. and Yvonne Denton. Steven Mays Sr., Lloyd Holcomb Jr., Bruce Lockett and Williams Fells voted against the resolution. Lanette Frazier, while present via ZOOM, could not vote due to new protocols where council members must vote in person.
Mayor Vivian Flowers plans to resubmit the resolution for Monday’s meeting, allowing council members to propose their own resolutions to support their company of choice in the interim. City attorney Althea Scott noted that, given the resolution’s failure and per city ordinance, the council must now consider the trash service company that ranked second in the scoring process, which was Green for Life. WM ranked third.
Holcomb initiated the discussion by questioning the availability of essential information, stating that details about the new proposals and contracts were not adequately provided in advance, and the contract was received hours before the meeting.
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Flowers explained that a lengthy discussion at Tuesday’s council meeting had led to the agreement to allow members to review all requested information. She clarified that while the proposals from both WM and CARDS were readily available, the contract itself was not drafted until recently.
Flowers provided extensive context on the rigorous competitive process that led to the current proposals, a process she initiated due to longstanding issues with waste collection and a 35-year-old contract that had never undergone a competitive review.
She cited past complaints from residents in a June 2024 council meeting. One resident reportedly “complained about having to constantly make phone calls to get a refund, then he had to make constant phone calls, because his trash had not been picked up, I believe for a period of two weeks at that time.” She also highlighted the city’s intent to include fines and accountability measures in the new contract, which were previously absent.
However, the debate quickly turned to the competing bids and the perceived differences in their adherence to the city’s Request for Proposal (RFP) standards. Jason Fitzgerald, vice president of business development for CARDS, argued that WM’s alternate bid, while lower at $15.85 per household, “isn’t comparing apples to apples.” He clarified that CARDS’ proposal, at $19.39, included “brand new trucks, brand new service equipment, brand new commercial containers and brand new residential carts,” as requested in the RFP.
Fitzgerald asserted that if comparing “apples to apples,” WM’s bid was “actually $6 higher than us for those same services.” He proudly stated that CARDS has deployed “over 50,000 carts in the city of Springdale in about 30 days,” demonstrating their capacity for transition.
Jamie Vernon, representing WM, defended its alternate bid by emphasizing the significant savings it offered residents – almost $2.9 million over five years. He also noted that WM is “open to negotiating anything with the city.”
More on the trash service resolution debate in Saturday’s issue.