CITY OF COMMERCEAGENDA REPORTCITY OF COMMERCEAGENDA REPORT
CITY OF COMMERCE
AGENDA REPORT
CITY OF COMMERCE
AGENDA REPORT
Item No. Item No.
Item No.
Item No.
TO: Honorable City Council
FROM: City Manager
SUBJECT: Consideration of Approval of First Amendment to the Existing Towing Services Agreement With Mr. C’s Towing Meeting Date: January 25, 2022
RECOMMENDATION:
City Council will consider for adoption a resolution approving a first amendment to the existing towing services agreement with Mr. C’s Towing, extending the term of the agreement for four (4) years.
BACKGROUND:
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the City’s Public Safety Division impound vehicles in the City limits. Vehicles are impounded for a variety of reasons, including illegal parking, and public nuisance, among other things. A service fee of $190 is charged pursuant to Section 22658 of the California Vehicle Code, as established by the City Council in 2009. The service fee is comparable to neighboring jurisdictions.
In 2018, at the conclusion of an RFP process, the City Council unanimously approved awarding a four-year contract to Mr. C’s to provide police-dispatching towing services and towing services for City vehicles. That agreement is scheduled to expire in May, unless the City Council extends the term of the agreement. In addition to extending the term of the agreement, the first amendment to the agreement that is being recommended includes the addition of a Force Majeure provision, which is consistent with the City’s more recent preferred services agreement.
Mr. C’s is also utilized by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Mr. C’s is locally based, has strong positive references, and has significant experience providing excellent towing services within the East Los Angeles and Los Angeles area.
Based on the outstanding performance and review of services provided within the last four years to the City of Commerce, staff recommends approval of a first amendment to the existing agreement with Mr. C’s Towing of South Gate, Inc. for the following reasons:
Mr. C’s Towing’s location enables them to respond quickly to tow service requests from Public Safety, Law Enforcement, and the City. Mr. C’s two locations are in close proximity to the City’s geographic area.
Mr. C’s Towing has acquired additional real estate to their primary yard serving the City to approximately 3 acres in order to provide better service.
Their tow and storage rates are within the industry standard, and they are equipped to handle the basic towing requirements of the City and are responsive to any requests, questions, or complaints. There are adequate secure storage and ability for the remote camera viewing by law enforcement.
Mr. C’s Towing has a successful service history of similar towing service contracts with a number of municipalities and a number of cities in the Southeast Area of Los Angeles County, including contracts for towing services with the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department and California Highway Patrol.
Mr. C’s Towing has two locations within the City’s general geographic area, the closest of which is 1.3 miles from Commerce City limits and 4 miles from City Hall.
Apart from being nearby for City residents who may have to retrieve their vehicles from their storage yard, Mr. C’s offers seven (7) off-street parking spaces for customers, including 1 ADA space.
Mr. C’s Towing has 25 tow trucks.
Mr. C’s has developed a great working relationship with the law enforcement contracts, having 14 total.
Mr. C’s offers remote camera viewing by law enforcement and has proven itself to have superior secure storage capabilities.
It is also worth noting that the Sheriff’s Department utilizes Mr. C’s services for the tows generated by the East Los Sheriff’s Station along with Citywide and another entity. Approximately 90% of Commerce thus is served by Mr. C’s as a result of that contract, so there would be good to continuity with Commerce doing the same.
FISCAL IMPACT:
This activity can be carried out without additional negative impact to the current operating budget. The City will continue to receive the collection fees as revenue and reimburse a portion to the towing company.
Respectfully Submitted: Edgar P. Cisneros, City Manager Approved as to form: Noel Tapia, City Attorney
Reviewed by: Vilko Domic, Finance Director
Recommended by: Lena Shumway, Director of Administrative Services and City Clerk Attachment: 1) Resolution
2) Agreement for Towing Services