Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 9, 2026
AGENDA REPORT
TO: Elizabeth Lake FROM: Liam Garland
Acting City Administrator Oakland Public Works
Director
SUBJECT: Owen Equipment Sales Inc Purchase
Contract
DATE: May 27, 2026
City Administrator Approval Date:
RECOMMENDATION
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt Resolution: 1) Awarding A Purchase Order To Owen Equipment Sales, Inc. The Lowest Responsible And Responsive Bidder In Accord With Of The Request For Quote Number 410533, Custom Equipment Specifications And The Contractor’s Bid That Met The Required Specifications For All Three Custom Units, In The Amount Not To Exceed Two Million Five Hundred Thousand ($2,500,000) Dollars For The Purchase Of Three (3) Vactor Truck Mounted Single Engine Combination Sewer Cleaners; And 2) Adopting California Environmental Quality Act Exemption Findings
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Adopting the proposed resolution to purchase three (3) Vactor Truck Mounted Single Engine Combination Sewer Cleaners will ensure Oakland Public Works (OPW) has adequate resources needed to minimize, respond, and clean up after harmful sanitary sewer overflows into the environment. These activities are mandated by a federal Sewer Consent Decree.
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
The Sewer Maintenance Division of OPW is responsible for performing preventive maintenance to over 932 miles of sewer mains, with underground pipes ranging from six inches to over 66 inches in diameter and also responding to sewer emergencies such as sewer spills and overflows. The City of Oakland (City) is currently operating under a Federal Consent Decree (Case Number C 09-00186-RS and C 09-05684-RS) that requires the City to clean 184 miles of sanitary sewer mains per year and inspect (televise with CCTV cameras) 92 miles of sanitary sewer pipe each year. To comply with this mandated operation, Sewer Maintenance must have adequate quantities of fully functional specialized equipment such as these Sewer Cleaner (flusher) trucks.
Betsy Lake (May 27, 2026 22:50:18 PDT)
May 27, 2026
Elizabeth Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Owen Equipment Sales Inc Purchase Contract
Date: May 27, 2026 Page 2
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 9, 2026
The OPW Sewer Division has eight (8) combinations sewer trucks (also known as hydro- flusher, jet vacuum, CCTV, and root cutter). Due to discontinued and otherwise difficult to obtain replacement parts, seven of the eight flusher trucks are currently inoperable, and the single remaining aged unit may become inoperable at any time. These critical emergency response vehicles are used to keep the sewer main clear from debris cover clear obstructions causing sewer spills, and to recover spilled sewage from the environment. With seven trucks currently out of service and one that may fail and become out of service at any time, the Sewer Maintenance Division frequently has been forced to rent flusher trucks at a cost of $168,000/year. A new flusher truck is approximately $750,000, so sustained renting of this type of equipment is not a sound economic decision. Failure to purchase this sewer emergency response equipment immediately reduces the City’s ability to preventively clean sewer pipes and increases the risk of sewer main blockages, and the resulting sanitary sewer overflows that release biological waste and cause sanitary issues throughout the City. This may also result in the City not being in compliance with the Federal Consent Decree for both cleaning, preventing and responding to sanitary sewer overflows and may subject the City to fines and penalties by the EPA.
ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
The Sewer Division developed custom specifications for their cleaner trucks, and the Vactor 2100i is preferred because it is widely regarded as a premier, high-performance combination sewer cleaner, favored for its superior suction, robust engineering, and operator-focused technology. It excels in sanitary/storm sewer cleaning and catch basin cleaning, offering specialized features like the Optional RDB 1015™ Boom: a rapid deployment boom that telescopes up to 10 feet and extends 15 feet down, cutting down setup time by 50%, improved ergonomics that reduce fatigue with convenient controls, improved safety features, and a 12- cubic yard debris body.
On April 17, 2026, the City conducted a Request for Quote (RFQ) Number 410533 to provide three (3) custom unit Vactor Truck Mounted Single Engine Combination Sewer Cleaners which was sent to twelve (12) business enterprises, including one local Oakland business, as listed table below:
No. Invited Vendors Response
Oakland
Business Y/N Address
1 OWEN EQUIPMENT SALES Yes N 1085 HORIZON DR, FAIRFIELD, CA 94533-1633 2 CUSTOM TRUCK ONE SOURCE No N 14670 RANDALL AVE, FONTANA, CA 92335-4200 3 FOSTON TRUCKING COMPANY No Y 1954 mountain Blvd Suite 13081, Oakland 94611 4 FREEDOM FORD TRUCK CENTER INC. No N 780 E Brokaw Rd, San Jose, CA 95112 5 HUSKY TRUCKS LLC No N 11222 E Marginal Way S, Seattle, WA 98168 6 NICHOLS TRUCKING No N 609 Ellis ST, King City, CA 93930 7 NORTHSTAR TRUCK LINES INC No N 29106 HILLVIEW ST, HAYWARD, CA 94544-6591 8 PACIFIC TRUCK & TRACTOR No N 29588 Ruus Rd, Hayward, CA 94544 9 PATTERSON LIFT TRUCKS INC No N 975 Industrial Parkway West, Hayward, CA 94544. 10 WESTERN TRUCK FABRICATION No N 1923 W WINTON AVE, HAYWARD, CA 94545-1205 11 PREFERRED TRUCK AND EQUIPMENT ... No N 8844 Elder Creek Rd, Ste A, Sacramento, CA 95828 12 JACK DOHENY COMPANIES INC Yes N 777 DOHENY DR, NORTHVILLE, MI 48167-1957 Elizabeth Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Owen Equipment Sales Inc Purchase Contract
Date: May 27, 2026 Page 3
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 9, 2026
The RFQ notice was also posted on the City's website and advertised in the City's official newspaper, East Bay Times (formerly Oakland Tribune) following Oakland Municipal Code Secton2.04.050.
On May 4, 2026, the City Clerk’s Office received three (3) quotations from Owen Equipment Sales, Inc., Jack Doheny Companies Inc, and Municipal Maintenance Equipment Inc.
RELATED PLANNING EFFORTS (Include All Applicable Plans) This agenda item is a routine item and does not relate to any Oakland strategic planning efforts.
However, this acquisition is part of the Sewer Maintenance Division’s vehicle replacement plan and is a component of the Sewer Maintenance Division’s federal Sewer Consent Decree compliance plan.
FISCAL IMPACT
This one-time purchase not to exceed $2,500,000 is funded as part of the Fiscal Year 2025-27 Adopted Biennial Budget within the following funding code: Sewer Service Fund (3100), Infrastructure Maint: Sewer System Organization (30533), EPA-Sewer Cleaning Project (1001676), and Sanitary Sewer Management & Maintenance Program (IN13).
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
The RFQ #410533 (Attachment A) notice was published on the City’s website and issued through Oracle Sourcing. No further public outreach was necessary for this report beyond posting on the City’s website.
COORDINATION
OPW prepared the requested action. This report and resolution were reviewed by the Office of the City Attorney and Budget Bureau.
RACE AND EQUITY
The proposed Resolution will ensure Sewer Maintenance Division has enough equipment and capability to provide sanitary sewer cleaning and emergency response equitably throughout the City, including vulnerable front-line communities.
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT)
This action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under the following CEQA Guideline Sections: Section 15060(c)(2) (no direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment); Section 15061(b)(3) (no significant effect on the Elizabeth Lake, Acting City Administrator
Subject: Owen Equipment Sales Inc Purchase Contract
Date: May 27, 2026 Page 4
Public Works and Transportation Committee
June 9, 2026
environment); Section 15301 (existing facilities); Section 15307 (protection of natural resources); Section 15308 (protection of the environment); and Section 15309 (inspections), each of which provides a separate and independent basis for CEQA clearance and when viewed collectively provide an overall basis for CEQA clearance.
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt Resolution: 1) Awarding A Purchase Order To Owen Equipment Sales, Inc. The Lowest Responsible And Responsive Bidder In Accord With Of The Request For Quote Number 410533, Custom Equipment Specifications And The Contractor’s Bid That Met The Required Specifications For All Three Custom Units, In The Amount Not To Exceed Two Million Five Hundred Thousand ($2,500,000) Dollars For The Purchase Of Three (3) Vactor Truck Mounted Single Engine Combination Sewer Cleaners; And 2) Adopting California Environmental Quality Act Exemption Findings.
For questions regarding this report, please contact Richard Battersby, Assistant Director Oakland Public Works, at (510) 915- 5722.
Respectfully submitted,
Liam Garland
Oakland Public Works Director
Prepared by:
Richard Battersby, Assistant Director
Oakland Public Works, BMIS
Attachments (1):
A. Request for Proposal # 410533
Liam Garland (May 27, 2026 09:09:04 PDT)