Outsourcing

The Costa Mesa City Council will consider Tuesday whether to outsource five city services, more than a year since the wheels were first set in motion amid furious protests from city workers and local activists. City staff are recommending Costa Mesa outsource its jail services and street sweeping but keep its animal control, building inspections and video production in-house. Staff recommend that the city contract with G4S Secure Solutions, a worldwide company owned by Danish security firm Group 4 Falck.

The city of Newport Beach this week took a preliminary step toward outsourcing the operation of the city jail to a private company. The city requested bids from providers who could operate the jail. Police Chief Jay Johnson said the move could reduce the jail's $1 million annual budget by 30% to 40%. The jail, located at Police Department headquarters in Newport Center, would not move from the area as part of the outsourcing proposal and no police personnel would be laid off, Johnson said.

The Newport Beach City Council voted to outsource its printing services and to inch forward in what could eventually be the privatization of its refuse collection services. The shutting down of the city's in-house print shop in favor of a contract with Office Depot will result in one layoff and is expected to save the city about $70,000 per year, a staff report said. Another print shop employee plans to retire. Newport's new Civic Center, which is set to host its first council meeting Dec. 11, will not have space for its own print shop.

I read the Feb. 9 Daily Pilot article, "Mayor pushing on with his plan," and the Feb. 7 Orange County Register editorial, " Outsourcing back in for Costa Mesa," that the Pilot article referred to, and I have several comments. The Pilot's report of Costa Mesa's Mayor Jim Righeimer moving forward on outsourcing by using retirement and attrition, rather than layoffs, may sound good, but there are still serious doubts about using outsourcing to reduce future pension obligations.

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a petition to hear Costa Mesa's appeal on an injunction barring its outsourcing plan, court records show. Both labor and city leaders predict the decision will have wide ranging implications for the state's general law cities and their ability to privatize services. Some cities may flock to a charter, a city constitution of sorts, predicted Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer, because the decision will limit their ability to outsource services to the private sector.

Re. " Newport Beach looks at outsourcing," Nov. 29: Your recent article on Newport Beach outsourcing services was nicely framed, specifically the most import facet, input from the citizens and taxpayers of Newport Beach. While I'm sure a majority of civic-minded individuals have little issue with our city government seeking less costly city service alternatives, I do hope our recently elected officials act in a like-minded civic manner and poll the users of the Newport Beach trash services.

Shading in the outlines of broad ideological arguments, the seven candidates for Costa Mesa City Council laid out two opposing platforms Wednesday night. They spoke at a forum hosted by the residents group Mesa Verde Community Inc., in front of about 250 people at the Costa Mesa Community Center. Three candidates support the current council majority's moves to reshape local government, while three oppose its tactics. The remaining candidate straddles both sides. This election is a pivotal one for Costa Mesa, as three of five council seats are up for grabs and residents will choose whether the city converts to a charter form of government.

Talks of outsourcing's potential for Costa Mesa are again making their way through the civic dialogue, but with one big exception from last time: no layoff notices. Mayor Jim Righeimer, in an interview published Thursday with the Orange County Register's editorial board, repeated past statements that he intends to examine outsourcing some city services, but that this time around, layoffs aren't being sought as a possible solution to save the city from its budgetary woes. In a subsequent interview with the Daily Pilot, he said staffing levels citywide are down through retirements and attrition.

When I was a kid, one of my favorite comic books was "What If … "What If Phoenix Had Not Died?"?" If you remember the movie "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006), you might recall that Jean Grey/Phoenix (Famke Janssen) dies in the end. The comic book dealt with what would have happened if Phoenix had lived. Long story short, her fury swallows up the entire universe. With that in mind, I'd like to play, "What If …" with the cities of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. "What if … Costa Mesa and Newport Beach outsourced their fire departments?"