Chula Vista city officials said Republic Services began reimbursing the city for money spent during a month-long strike among its sanitation workers that impacted thousands of customers in Bonita, Chula Vista, and several parts of San Diego.
According to City Attorney Glen Googins during a July 19 City Council Meeting, Republic Services delivered a $16,668.80 check for direct third-party costs. It remains unclear exactly when the city received the money.
A settlement agreement between Republic Services and the city was finalized on June 13. On the following day, the city’s Manager, Maria Kachadoorian, made the first public announcement about the settlement during a city council meeting.
Under the settlement, Republic Services will provide the city with no less than $90,000 in credits for services that include studies to determine best practices to waste reduction and waste collection from city properties and events.
Under the agreement, residential customers will receive 46 percent of the credit based on the monthly rate and the percentage of the bill that is for collection service. So, if your monthly bill is $30, you will receive a $13.80 credit.
Credits for multi-family and commercial customers will be calculated on a case-by-case basis considering the level of service disruption to each customer. The waste hauler said customers will be notified through its website.
According to Googins, Republic Services began providing services that would offset the city’s credit, noting it cleared assisted with a homeless encampment cleanup on June 19 and will remove illegally disposed of tires from the Otay Valley river bottom.
In March, the city council voted 3-1 in a closed session meeting to authorize Kachadoorian to reach a settlement with the agreed-upon terms. Galvez voted against the move, and Padilla was absent. During the June 19 City Council meeting, Padilla clarified his opposition to the settlement.
The city attorney also addressed a letter his office received from attorney John Moot on behalf of his client Russ Hall, alleging violations of the Brown Act.
“Based on the actions that the City Council did take and the research that we conducted on the allegations made, my office has concluded that no Brown Act violation has occurred and that no further action on this matter was necessary,” said Googins.
Moot read the letter on behalf of Hall, calling on the city council to hire an outside firm to independently investigate how the settlement was handled.
