Update 3:19 p.m. Wednesday: Old South Glengarry garbage deal to continue through October 2020
LANCASTER – A legal opinion from a lawyer, hired by South Glengarry, says the municipality was well within its rights to cancel or terminate all bids for a $2 million garbage contract.
That’s according to a staff report for tonight’s (Tuesday) council meeting.
Two bidders had flexed their legal muscle in July, sending lawyer’s letters to the municipality, for not awarding a contract through 2023. The $2 million garbage contract was defeated during a May council meeting after Deputy Mayor Lyle Warden said bag limits had not been addressed with the new council.
Warden would like to see a two (2) bag limit. The current limit is eight (8).
Bidder Environmental 360 Solutions, which had the better bid, argued the process had exposed their pricing and put them at a disadvantage against the competitor and current contractor, HGC Management. The company also argued it was out of pocket $760,000 in equipment it bought, thinking it was going to get the deal.
But in tonight’s report to council, Infrastructure GM Ewen MacDonald says their legal opinion from a procurement lawyer “states that the Township was fully entitled to cancel/terminate the process at any time, without incurring any liability.”
It’s being recommended that council extend the contract until June 1, 2020 to HGC Management to allow a review of waste management, which would include bag limits. HGC has been doing the work since June this year after it agreed to the township’s request for a six month extension.
The monthly cost is around $37,000 and there is $490,000 in the budget for garbage collection.