Source: By Robert Barkin, American City & County, Aug 1, 2008 12:00 PM
With the clock ticking last fall, Centennial, Colo., officials had a tough decision to make. For the first time since it incorporated in 2001, the Denver-area city soon would be responsible for its own public works services, which previously were provided by Arapahoe County. City leaders had to make a choice: go it alone or hire out the operation to a contractor.
So, Public Works Director Dave Zelenok opened his spreadsheet and calculated the options. He could either build his department from scratch, buy all the equipment and hire a staff, or he could outsource the whole operation to a third-party provider. After running the numbers, he and other city leaders decided to outsource. "I was pleasantly surprised," he says. "The outsource option was competitive against the public sector model in a large city."
On July 1, 2008, Englewood, Colo.-based CH2M HILL OMI began conducting all public works functions for the city of 110,000 residents, from water and wastewater system optimization and operation to community development and public works administration.
