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she was frustrated to learn that Paper Gobblers is available only in certain areas of Hacienda Business Park. Mr. Bocian said that staff is aware of a number of the issues described and is working with PGS in the coming weeks to try to continue to expand upon the current recycling program offerings. He reiterated that the issue of organic waste is still unsettled but said that they do hope to come to some agreement on how to roll that program out in a phased manner over the coming months. Mayor Thorne closed the public comment. Councilmember Brown noted that she served on the subcommittee with former Councilmember Cook- Kallio and explained that they both felt strongly that a variable rate approach would encourage users towards the smaller can sizes and increased recycling efforts. She also pointed out that the current Franchise Agreement is in effect through June 2019 and said she would like to be both fair and reasonable in working through that business partnership. Councilmember Narum concurred, acknowledging that while it may not be the most desirable option from PGS's perspective this does seem to be the appropriate time to address the disparity between the city's rates for a 96-gallon can and those of surrounding cities. Mayor Thome asked and Mr. Bocian confirmed that the Council does have the ability to adjust rates in the future if the variable rate option proves to create any of the undesirable issues described. Councilmember Olson disclosed that he had several discussions with Bob Molinaro of PGS prior to the recent election and his decision to run for Council. He explained that he has professional experience in financing this type of operation and had advised Mr. Molinaro of the company's need for better cost accounting. He indicated his support for moving towards a cost plus profit model. He questioned what the variable rate option actually serves to accomplish, as the 96-gallon rate is still significantly less than in other communities, and asked why staff would not recommend a more substantial increase to the 96- gallon rate to accomplish its goal. Mr. Bocian stated that that was one of the questions raised by the subcommittee. He explained that staff has approached this largely from the perspective of trying to sort of blend these newer policy and rate trends into a system that historically centered on a 96-gallon cart basis. As the city's programs have evolved and particularly when the comingled recycling program was introduced in 2009, there was a fair amount of concern over the potential migration and how that might impact rates. Mr. Fialho reminded the Council that Mr. Bocian indicated earlier that the distribution between the 35 and 96-gallon carts is approximately 50/50. However, prior to implementing the city's current refuse and recycling systems, the vast majority of accounts were 96-gallon bins which made for a very competitive program from a capacity and collections standpoint within the region. If the Council is truly interested in incentivizing people to recycle more, one option would be to maintain or decrease the 35-gallon rate while also accelerating an increase on the 96-gallon container. Councilmember Olson asked what the 96-gallon cart would be under variable rate alternative, to which Mr. Bocian replied $41.43. He noted this is only about $1 more per month than the fixed rate option. Councilmember Olson said it is a testament to PGS' service and commitment to this community that Pleasanton has not experienced a garbage strike even once in the 30 years he's lived here. He offered his support for the variable rate adjustment and reiterated his desire that PGS take a hard look at cost accounting and be prepared to provide some solid data on the true cost of the services it provides. Vice-Mayor Pentin expressed some concern with the potential for migration over and above what is anticipated though he did not necessarily feel that the current proposal would seriously affect migration. City Council Minutes Page 16 of 18 Dec 16, 2014