$2-Million Disposal Pact OKd

The City Council on Tuesday agreed to pay more than $2.26 million over the next five years to Bestway Recycling Co. Inc. of Los Angeles to collect reusable aluminum, plastic, glass, paper, newspaper and cardboard for shipment to Pacific Rim countries.

City officials said the program will be less expensive than the cost of dumping trash at Scholl Canyon, the city’s only landfill, and will conserve space there. Earlier bids by other companies were rejected by the council in November as too expensive.

The city has sponsored a curbside pickup program since 1988 and plans to open a city-built, drop-off recycling center at 800 Flower St. by March 1. Bestway has agreed to operate the center from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays, Public Works Director George Miller said.

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The city plans an aggressive public relations campaign to encourage residents to take recyclable material to the new center, Miller said.

The new contract will replace one that has been held by CR & R, which has been conducting a curbside pickup program and distributing the material locally, Miller said. CR & R was fourth-highest in the bidding, with a projected first-year cost of $376,561. The program at the recycling center, built last year, will be new.

The contract with Bestway will cost the city $188,972 for the first year, considerably lower than the city’s original estimate of $310,000. Costs in the following years are negotiable.

The recycling center, built last year, is next to a city-operated center for disposal of hazardous waste, such as used motor oil and household chemicals. The city recently has been given several awards for innovation in conservation and environmental protection efforts.