City Council Passes $5 Million Fuel Contract as Part of Consent Calendar

The City Council passed a $5.1 million contract with Paramount-based Falcon Fuels for furnishing and delivering bulk unleaded gasoline and renewable diesel fuel as part of Monday’s consent calendar.

The contract is part of an effort by the city to move to “green diesel” fuel, a more environmentally-friendly, cleaner-burning option that can be used in diesel engines without modification.

Since the use of renewable diesel fuel has not adversely impacted the service or quality of city emergency vehicles, staff proposed to fully transition from regular diesel fuel to renewable diesel fuel to power all diesel engines in the city’s fleet.

The city’s public works, building systems and fleet management division (BSFMD) purchases and supplies unleaded and regular diesel fuel for the city’s fleet.

Pasadena has four fueling sites located at the city yard, civil defense center, police department, and Fire Station 33 with a total of 10 fuel underground storage tanks (USTs).

Pasadena’s BSFMD currently manages bulk ordering of fuel for nine USTs. The remaining UST at Fire Station 33 has been filled with renewable diesel fuel since 2017 and is utilized by the fire department to fuel its diesel-powered frontline rescue ambulances, engines, and ladder trucks.

Here are the other items that were passed on Monday’s consent calendar:

• A $1,051,200 contract with Craftwater Engineering for professional engineering and design services for the San Rafael Treatment Wetlands and Stormwater Capture Project. The city is required to take the steps necessary to reduce or eliminate pollution in stormwater runoff. The city is part of a group of 18 agencies who participate in the Upper Los Angeles River (ULAR) Enhanced Watershed Management Program, which addresses NPDES compliance issues as a watershed region rather than as independent municipalities. Stormwater in the Arroyo Seco/Upper Los Angeles River regularly exceeds the Total Maximum Daily Load for bacteria and other pollutants set by the RWQCB. In order to achieve compliance for regulated pollutants, the ULAR Watershed agencies adopted a Load Reduction Strategy (LRS), which is a roadmap to compliance for the region as a whole. The LRS identified the San Rafael Creek outfall at its confluence with the Arroyo Seco channel as a significant source of bacteria from dry weather flows, and requires this discharge be diverted from the Arroyo Seco or otherwise eliminated. The NPDES permit deadline for bacteria load reduction compliance is September 2023 for all permittees.

• Purchase order contracts for emergency vehicle outfitting with West Coast Lights and Sirens for $750,000 and commune, inc. for $250,000 in a combined grand total amount not-to-exceed $1 million for up to five years. The Department of Public Works, Building Systems and Fleet Management Division (BSFMD) is tasked with providing vehicle replacement for various City departments based on a scoring system including factors such as the vehicle’s age, mileage, condition, usage, maintenance and repair history. As part of the approved 3-Year Fleet Replacement Plan, approximately 70 vehicles in the Police and Fire Departments are scheduled for replacement. Installation of lighting, sirens, and other specialized accessories is a key phase of the emergency vehicle procurement process.

• A Memorandum of Understanding between the city and the Service Employees International Union, Local 721. The Service Employees International Union, Local 721 (SEIU) represents 26 full-time employees in the classifications of Solid Waste Truck Operator I and II. The most recent Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and the SEIU expired on June 30. Negotiations for a successor MOU began on October 26, and the parties reached a tentative agreement on a 24-month successor MOU on February 2.

• The council will also receive, and discuss if necessary the city’s eight annual financial statements and four compliance-related reports for the fiscal year ended June 30. All financial statements received an unmodified (or clean) opinion. There were no instances of deficiency in internal controls (material weakness or significant deficiency), and noncompliance identified in the Independent Auditors’ Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting and on Compliance and Other Matters Based on an Audit of Financial Statements Performed in accordance with government auditing standards. The single audit is still in progress at this time.