Poway Municipal Code Art. IV Operating Standards

A. General. Franchisee shall provide a fleet of collection vehicles sufficient in number and capacity to perform efficiently the work required by the franchise agreement in strict accordance with its terms. All such vehicles shall have watertight bodies designed to prevent leakage, spillage or overflow. All such vehicles shall comply with the noise abatement requirements of this chapter.

B. Specifications. All vehicles used by franchisee in providing solid waste, recyclables, yard waste and other compostables collection services shall be registered with the California Department of Motor Vehicles and shall meet or exceed all legal standards. Franchisee shall maintain all of its collection vehicles in compliance with the provisions of the California Vehicle Code. Routine inspections by the California Highway Patrol shall be required annually on all vehicles, and certificates for said inspection shall be filed with the Director of Public Works.

C. Vehicle Identification. Franchisee’s name, local telephone number, and a unique vehicle identification number designed by franchisee for each vehicle shall be prominently displayed on all vehicles, in letters and numbers no less than two and one-half inches high. Similarly, the words “Serving the City of Poway” shall be displayed beneath the franchisee’s name. Franchisee shall not place the City’s logo on its vehicles. The Director of Public Works reserves the right to reinspect any and all collection vehicles with a 24-hour notice.

D. Cleaning and Maintenance. Franchisee shall maintain all of its properties, facilities, and equipment used in providing service under the franchise agreement in a safe, neat, clean and operable condition at all times. All trucks, trailers, and other conveyances or equipment, including bins, used to collect, haul, and transport solid waste, recyclables, yard waste and other compostables shall at all times be kept clean, in good repair, and well and uniformly painted, to the satisfaction of the Director of Public Works.

(Ord. 448 § 2, 1995; Ord. 659 §§ 11, 12, 2007)

A. General. Franchisee shall furnish such qualified drivers, mechanical, supervisory, clerical and other personnel as may be necessary to provide the services required by the franchise agreement in a safe and efficient manner.

B. Driver Qualifications. All drivers shall be trained and qualified in the operation of collection vehicles and must have in effect a valid license, of the appropriate class, issued by the California Department of Motor Vehicles. The franchisee shall furnish photostat copies of the licenses for all vehicle operators.

C. Identification Badge. Franchisee shall require its drivers, and all other employees who come into contact with the public, to wear a badge as a means of identifying the employee.

D. Safety Training. Franchisee shall provide suitable operational and safety training for all of its employees who utilize or operate vehicles or equipment for collection of solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, and other compostables or who are otherwise directly involved in such collection. Franchisee shall train its employees involved in solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, and other compostables collection to identify, and not to collect, hazardous or infectious waste.

E. No Gratuities. Franchisee shall not permit its employees to demand or solicit, directly or indirectly, any additional compensation or gratuity from members of the public for the collection of solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, and other compostables under the franchise agreement.

F. Employees’ Appearance and Conduct. All employees, while engaged in the collection or gathering of solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, and other compostables within the City, shall be attired in suitable and acceptable uniforms which are subject to approval by the Director of Public Works. Franchisee shall use its best efforts to assure that all employees present a neat appearance and conduct themselves in a courteous manner. Franchisee shall regularly train its employees in customer courtesy, shall prohibit the use of loud or profane language, and shall instruct collection crews to perform the work as quietly as possible. If any employee is found not to be courteous or not to be performing services in the manner required by this chapter, franchisee shall take all appropriate corrective measures.

G. Provision of Field Supervision. Franchisee shall designate one qualified employee as on-site supervisor of field operations who shall be equipped with a vehicle and mobile telephone. The field supervisor will devote all of his or her time in the field, within the City of Poway, checking on collection operations, coordinating improvements to service, resolving field problems, and responding to complaints of customers either in person or by telephone. The field supervisor shall be expected to respond to complaints within two working hours and to correct field deficiencies within one working day.

(Ord. 448 § 2, 1995; Ord. 659 § 13, 2007)

A. Care of Private Property. Reasonable care shall be used by the franchisee’s employees in handling all privately owned collection containers and enclosures, and all damage caused by the negligence or carelessness of the franchisee’s employees shall be promptly adjusted with the owner thereof. All collection containers after emptying thereof by the franchisee’s employees shall be returned to within five feet of the location from which the same were picked up by the franchisee’s employees, upright with lids properly placed to ensure same are not deposited in any driveway, sidewalk, or street. Franchisee shall ensure that its employees close all gates opened by them in making collections, unless otherwise directed by the customer, and avoid crossing landscaped areas and climbing or jumping over hedges and fences. City shall refer complaints about damage to private property to franchisee.

B. Noise. All solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, and other compostables collection operations shall be conducted as quietly as possible and shall conform to applicable Federal, State, County and City noise level regulations. The City may conduct random checks of noise emission levels to ensure such compliance. Franchisee will promptly resolve any complaints of noise to the satisfaction of the Director of Public Works.

C. Record of Noncollection. When any solid waste, recyclable, yard waste or other compostable material deposited for collection is not collected by the franchisee because it fails to meet the requirements of the Poway Municipal Code or the franchise agreement, franchisee shall leave a bilingual Spanish/English red tag (provided at franchisee’s cost) at least three inches by six inches in size, on which franchisee shall indicate the reasons for refusal to collect the solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, or other compostables, giving reference to the section of the municipal code or to the section of the franchise agreement which has been violated, and which gives grounds for franchisee’s refusal as well as the franchisee’s address, phone number and business hours. This information shall either be in writing or by means of a checklist system. Contractor shall tag those containers where recyclables are not routinely separated and notify the City who will take further action.

In addition thereto, franchisee shall maintain, at the franchisee’s place of business, a log book listing all complaints and taggings. Said log book shall contain the names and addresses of parties involved, date of such complaint or tagging, nature of same and date and manner of disposition of each case. Such log shall be kept so that it may conveniently be inspected by the Director of Public Works upon request. Such log shall be retained for at least two years after the last entry. The Director of Public Works may request this log at any time.

(Ord. 448 § 2, 1995; Ord. 659 §§ 14, 15, 2007)

A. Public/Customer Service and Accessibility.

1. Office Location. Franchisee shall provide a business office available to its customers for purposes of carrying out its obligations under the franchise agreement.

2. Office Hours. Franchisee’s office shall be open to the public from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. The office may be closed on Saturdays and Sundays and those holidays recognized by the franchisee. The franchisee shall notify the Director of Public Works of the holidays recognized by the franchisee.

3. Availability of Representatives. A representative of the franchisee shall be available at the franchisee’s office during office hours to communicate with the public in person and by telephone. A suitable drop box or collections mechanism shall be provided in the franchisee’s office for the receipt of payments.

4. Telephone. Franchisee shall maintain a toll-free telephone system in operation at its office at all times. Franchisee shall install telephone equipment, and have available service representatives sufficient to handle the volume of calls typically experienced on the busiest days. Telephone service shall be provided from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Franchisee shall also maintain an after-hours telephone number for use during other than normal business hours. Franchisee shall have a representative or voice mail available at said after-hours toll-free telephone number during all hours other than normal office hours. If customers are unable with reasonable effort to reach franchisee’s office by phone, or are subject to waiting time “on hold” of more than two minutes prior to reaching a customer service representative, the Director of Public Works may require that franchisee install additional telephone lines or hire additional customer service representatives.

The Director of Public Works and Director of Safety Services shall be provided with an emergency phone number.

5. Consumer Information. The City Manager may direct franchisee to prepare bilingual information cards containing information about the amounts of solid waste which will be collected, times for special collection events, curbside recycling and household hazardous waste drop-off programs, collection schedules, rates and complaint procedures. Franchisee shall distribute such information cards to the occupants of all residential and commercial premises. Information cards shall be revised and distributed if there is any material change in the information and, in any event, whenever a new customer is first billed. Information cards shall also be mailed to City residents upon request and shall be provided to the Poway Chamber of Commerce in quantities required by the Poway Chamber of Commerce. Franchisee shall submit printer’s proofs of the information cards to the Director of Public Works prior to distribution and will incorporate City’s comments in the final version distributed to the public.

(Ord. 448 § 2, 1995; Ord. 659 §§ 16, 17, 18, 2007)

Franchisee shall maintain a written log of all oral and written service complaints registered with the franchisee from customers within the City. Franchisee shall be responsible for the prompt and courteous attention to, and prompt and reasonable resolution of, all customer complaints. Franchisee shall record in a separate log all written and oral complaints, noting the name and address of complainant, date and time of complaint, nature of complaint, and nature and date of resolution. This complaint log shall be retained by the franchisee for at least one year after the last entry. The Director of Public Works may review the log at any reasonable time.

Franchisee shall respond to all complaints from customers within two hours and correct deficiencies within 24 hours, weekends and holidays excluded. In particular, if a complaint involves a failure to collect solid waste, recyclables, yard waste, and other compostables from a premises, required by the franchise agreement, franchisee shall collect the solid waste, recyclables, yard waste and other compostables in question within such 24-hour period, provided it has been delivered for collection in accordance with this chapter.

(Ord. 448 § 2, 1995; Ord. 659 § 19, 2007)

At the City Council’s sole option, with 60 days’ written notification to the franchisee, it may conduct a public hearing at which the franchisee shall be present and shall participate, to review the franchisee’s performance and quality of service and to provide for technological and regulatory changes. The reports required by this chapter and the franchise agreement regarding customer complaints shall be utilized as one basis for review. In addition, any customer may submit comments or complaints during the review meetings, either orally or in writing, and these shall be considered. Such hearings may be scheduled by the City Council at its discretion throughout the term of the franchise, but not more often than annually.

Within 30 days after the conclusion of the public hearing, the City Council shall issue a report with respect to the matters raised at the hearings. If any noncompliance with the franchise is found, the Director of Public Works may direct the franchisee to correct the inadequacies in accordance with the terms of this chapter and the franchise agreement. Any change in scope of services or equipment shall be reflected in an amendment to the franchise agreement.

(Ord. 448 § 2, 1995; Ord. 659 § 20, 2007)