Loading...
SR - AGR-4710.B - POLICE TOWING AND STORAGE SERVICE AGREEMENT1. SUBJECT Official Police Towing and Storage Service Agreement 2. SUMMARY The Orange Police Department utilizes private towing companies for the removal, storage and impounding of vehicles during the course of business. The agreement with the current tow companies expired on March 28, 2016. Since that date, the current towing and storage providers utilized by the Police Department agreed to continue operating without interruption under the terms and guidelines of the expired contract. This allowed the City to explore alternatives for towing and storage services. At the conclusion of those studies, the Police Department began the RFP process for contracts with local tow companies. The Orange Police Department recommends the following tow companies: California Coach, Tows R Russ, Archie's Towing, and Southside Towing. These four tow companies meet the requirements as outlined and set forth in the RFP. It is the recommendation of the Police Department to award these four companies with three (3) year agreements with a possible extension of two (2) years. Two of the applicants, Authentic Brothers Towing and Hadley Towing do not meet the minimum requirements and are not recommended by the Police Department. 13. RECOMMENDATION 1. Authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute agreements between the City and California Coach, Tows R Russ, Archie's Towing and Southside Towing effective August 1, 2016, on behalf of the City. 2. Approve accompanying Fee Schedule, effective August 1, 2016. 4. FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact for services provided for non -City owned vehicles. 5. STRATEGIC PLAN la. Provide for a Safe Community Provide staffing and resources to deliver services that ensure public safety. 6. GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION Public Safety Goal 6.0 Provide public safety services of the highest quality. Policy 6.1: Provide the Police Department with adequate personnel, equipment and state -of the art- technology to effectively combat crime, meet existing and projected service demands, and provide crime prevention programs. These resources should be provided prior to anticipated needs. 7. DISCUSSION and BACKGROUND The responsibility of the City and Police Department to provide for the safety of the public, and to ensure smooth traffic flow, often requires the removal of vehicles from the roadway via towing service. During the normal course of business, the Police Department responds to numerous traffic collisions and disabled or abandoned vehicles, where removal is necessary. The Police Department is also authorized to remove certain vehicles from the roadway and off - street parking facilities pursuant to provisions of the California Vehicle Code. These services are provided through contract with independent towing companies licensed to conduct business in the City. The Official Police Tow and Storage Services (OPTS) contract expired March 28, 2014; however, it was contractually agreed upon to add a two -year extension until March 28, 2016. The proposed contract will be active August 1, 2016 through August 1, 2019. The RFP (Request for Proposal) was prepared and released by Purchasing. As a result, we received six Proposals (RFP 156 -32) to consider for recommendation. Five of the existing tow companies who are currently towing for the Police Department submitted proposals, which included California Coach, Tows R Russ, Archie's Towing, Southside Towing, and Authentic Brothers. The sixth proposal was from Hadley Towing. Hadley Towing had been awarded a tow contract in 2008 and was suspended in 2010 for three years, due to multiple violations of the Orange Police Department Towing and Storage Agreement. The Police Department's objective was to visit each location and conduct unannounced on -site inspections. Our goal was to evaluate each company and provide the Mayor and City Council with our recommendations. A committee was formed with four raters, who were veteran Police Department employees. They are all familiar with tow company practices. One of the raters, Motor Corporal Officer Jeff. Gray, is the Department's Tow Officer. He is responsible for managing the tow contracts and investigating tow complaints. ITEM 2 7/12/16 The committee conducted unannounced on -site inspections. Each rater independently evaluated the tow companies according to the requirements and standards set forth in the Request for Proposal (RFP) and OPD Policy 504. The scores were compiled and averaged. The following criteria were included in the Request for Proposal and assisted the committee in determining the qualifications of the applicants. • Service Requirements: The Company must abide by the requirements set forth under Department Policy. Those requirements include, but are not limited to; 24- hour /7 -day availability; 20- minute response time; live dispatch; approved rate schedule; valid City of Orange business license; security practices; open for inspection at any time during business hours. • Facility and Equipment Requirements: On -site office for billing and vehicle release; regular 8:00 am — 5:00 pm business hours; storage capacity for 100 vehicles; approved fencing; secure storage area for evidence. Light and Medium - duty tow trucks are required; Heavy -duty trucks are recommended, but not required. • Qualification of Personnel Experience of employees and management in towing procedure; qualifications of office staff to ensure proper vehicle tracking, billing and recordkeeping; longevity of tow drivers is part of these criteria. • Prior Experience: Years in business; experience type; years of service in police towing and storage. • Accident and Damage Claims History Self- explanatory. • References: Other law enforcement agencies; bank and personal references. Below is a list of tow truck companies and the results: 1. California Coach 98% 2. Tows R Russ 97% 3. Archie's Towing 92% 4. Southside Towing 87% 5. Authentic Towing 71% 6. Hadley Towing 62% Refer to Attachment "A" for the summary of the tow company evaluations. The Police Department operates the tow storage requests via a computer aided rotation system, which automatically selects the next tow company in the rotation. Each of the existing five tow companies is part of the rotation. Over the first five months of 2016, an average of 179 vehicles have been towed per month, which equates to approximately 35 tows per month for each tow company. ITEM 3 7/12/16 A review of police agencies in Orange County was conducted to assess the number of tow providers per City. Newport Beach (87,000 population), Costa Mesa (113,000 population), and Fullerton (141,000 population) each have two tow providers. Garden Grove (175,000 population), Santa Ana (335,000 population), and Anaheim (351,000 population) each have four tow providers. As such it is recommended that the Orange Police Department reduce the number of tow operators to four to be consistent with other cities in the county. Based upon the evaluation results, the Orange Police Department recommends the following tow companies: California Coach, Tows R Russ, Archie's Towing, and Southside Towing. These four tow companies meet the requirements as outlined and set forth in the RFP to provide tow services. It is the recommendation of the Police Department to award these four companies with three (3) year agreements with a possible extension of two (2) years. The four recommended tow companies will adequately serve the needs of the Police Department. There are two tow companies the Police Department is not recommending. They are Authentic Brothers and Hadley Towing. On January 25, 2011, Authentic Brothers was awarded a tow contract. The Police Department initially opposed a contract with Authentic Brothers as they did not meet the requirements within that RFP related to the size of the storage yard. However, an exception was made and they were awarded a contract. Authentic Brothers' current yard still does not meet the specifications outlined in the most recent RFP. There still remains a concern over the lack of space to store vehicles. The lot storage capacity is 48 vehicles and does not meet the minimum requirements of 100. Due to their small lot size, they often stop their tow trucks in the traffic lane on Parker Street causing an unsafe condition of the business while conducting their activities. In addition to our safety concerns with their lot size, an inspection in 2016 by C.H.P. discovered that 6 of the 9 trucks were unsafe. Authentic Brothers has indicated that the safety issues had been fixed; however, they have not had their problem vehicles re- inspected at the time of this writing. The storage of vehicles for evidence in criminal cases is critical to the successful prosecution, integrity, and thoroughness of police investigations. Upon inspection of the evidence storage area for Authentic Brothers we found the evidence gate was left open and unsecured. The employees indicated they needed the gate open to access the evidence area to retrieve batteries for roadside assistance. There were stacks of car batteries located along the south wall labeled AAA. Although there were no police impounded vehicles inside the enclosure at the time of our inspection, it must be maintained in a constant state of readiness. Their practices call into question their ability to maintain the security and integrity of evidence. For the reasons of lack of storage space, public safety and evidence storage readiness, the Police Department does not recommend Authentic Brothers Towing. The Police Department does not recommend Hadley Towing. On July 8, 2008, Hadley Tow was awarded a tow contract with the City and was part of the tow rotation for the Police Department. On November 22, 2010, an investigation into numerous violations of the Orange Police Towing and Storage Agreement and Department Policy was completed by the Police Department. The outcome of the investigation resulted in Hadley Towing Company being terminated from the ITEM 4 7/12/16 Orange Police Towing and Storage Agreement. Hadley Towing was not allowed to reapply for rotational tow for a period of three years. Hadley Towing ranked last out of the six tow companies in the evaluation process. It was difficult to evaluate the services, facility, equipment, and personnel due to the current status of the business as their yard is not ready to operate. When questioned as to the readiness, the on- site representative stated they were not making improvements in order to meet the minimum requirements until a contract was awarded. The Police Department has similar concerns with Hadley Towing as with Authentic Brothers. The lot storage capacity is 86 and does not meet the minimum requirements of 100. The evidence holding area had two large glass windows located along the east wall, which faced Parker St. The windows could easily be broken, allowing for possible evidence contamination and or theft. In addition, this area was used as a main walkway so the employees could access the tow yard from the office. There was no other route to the tow yard, without going around the outside of the building. The evidence area had an aluminum door, which did not have a locking mechanism and was held open with a string. Hadley Towing lacks the evidence storage area that is required by the Police Department. For the reasons of the prior discipline history and no change in ownership, inadequate evidence storage capabilities, and overall lack of readiness, the Police Department does not recommend Hadley Towing. The Official Police Towing and Storage Agreement outlines the equipment, vehicle and performance requirements for those companies who desire to contract with the City to provide towing and storage services. The agreement also provides for oversight of the services provided and fees charged for services, including insurance and indemnification of the City, as well as provisions for the review and investigation of complaints, and suspension or termination of individual agreements. The schedule of rates will remain the same. 8. ATTACHMENTS • Official Police Towing and Storage Agreement • Police Department Fee Schedule for Contracted Tow Companies • Police Department Policy # 504 • Attachments A for summary of the tow company evaluations ITEM s 7/12/16 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES JULY 12, 2016 7. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS (Continued) 7.3 Official Police Towing and Storage Service Agreement. (A2100.0; Agr- 4710.A, 4714.A, 5707, 5710) MOTION — Whitaker SECOND — Murphy AYES — Alvarez, Whitaker, Smith, Murphy ABSENT — Nichols Moved to: 1) Authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute agreements between the City and California Coach, Tows R Russ, Archie's Towing, and South Side Towing effective August 1, 2016, on behalf of the City; and 2) Approve accompanying Fee Schedule, effective August 1, 2016. 8. REPORTS FROM CITY MANAGER City Manager Otto reported that the City is on track for launching the new City website on January 1, 2017. 9. LEGAL AFFAIRS — None 10. ITEMS RELATING TO THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY OF THE ORANGE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY — None PAGE 9