T.O.'S CATERING DRAWS ATTENTION; QUESTIONS RAISED REGARDING CITY'S BIDDING PROCESS.

Byline: Sonia Giordani Daily News Staff Writer

From pizza to pretzels that prep council members for their marathon Tuesday night meetings and get city staffers through lunchtime sessions, the city spent more than $27,000 in catering bills in 1997, city records show.

City Council meals eaten in closed session accounted for $4,321.63, while planning commissioners ate up $617.92 before their own Monday night sessions.

In addition, food for special events recognizing public employees and city volunteers amounted to more than $8,800 and $2,300 was spent to cater training sessions for various department staff members, with the annual Halloween picnic costing about $1,187.

``As with any business, part of our business has to be attended to during lunch or dinner time,'' said Interim City Manager MaryJane Lazz. ``We have committee meetings with citizens coming straight from work volunteering their time to work for the city. We may not be able to provide them with a full dinner, but maybe a snack or some sandwiches just as a courtesy.''

The city's catering documents were released to the Daily News on Thursday under a public records request after a public debate exploded earlier this month over whether some local eateries and food retailers were being favored in catering city events.

The city has no policy regulating how much of the public funds can be spent on food or how caterers are selected. Lazz said city officials are conscientious in selecting local eateries that not only make prompt deliveries before city meetings but also offer the most competitive prices.

Within blocks of the Civic Arts Plaza, Roxy's Famous Deli brought in more than $1,813 last year, much of it for catered council meals. Winner's Pizza and Pasta saw $1,586.42.

Bills for food purchases made at Smart and Final came to $4,022.70, while an additional $1,266.35 was spent at other grocery stores, including Vons, Hughes and Ralphs.

``It's just good common sense, good judgment. We have supervisors who are responsible for their divisions or departments, but it's really up to the staff people,'' Lazz said.

While Thousand Oaks makes sure to offer meals or at least snacks and refreshments at most of its city meetings, Simi Valley rarely makes such amenities available, said Laura Heron, assistant city manager.

``Generally, we will bring in food for the City Council when they are in closed session before a City Council meeting. But that is infrequent,'' she said.

``It's not a set rule. The idea is that if there is a meeting scheduled at a time that might preclude those attending from getting dinner, then we offer food. But that is usually limited to the City Council a couple times each month,'' she said, adding that planning commissioners, who meet twice each month at 7 p.m., do not get dinner.

The Conejo Valley Unified School District rarely provides meals for its Board of Trustees, said Gary Mortimer, assistant superintendent of business services.

``Sometimes we'll get some cold sandwiches and make some coffee if the board members have to come in the afternoon and work through the evening,'' he said, adding that it usually comes to a few hundred dollars each year.

Mortimer said district employees are asked to pitch in for staff parties.

The allegation that some catering companies were being preferred over others came earlier this month when Mayor Pro Tem Linda Parks proposed establishing a formal bidding process for catered events and pricier city functions.

``There is a difference between the big events and the small stuff,'' Parks said. ``We use a lot of different restaurants for the small things we order out before meetings. But then there are the larger catering events that we can plan ahead for and we could go out to bid for those.''

In a city memo submitted to the City Council on May 5, Parks specifically noted that the Plug Nickel - a 23-year-old restaurant and catering company in Westlake Village owned by Dixie Vollmer, an active member in last year's campaign to recall Councilwoman Elois Zeanah - had been called upon to provide catered food for the city on at least three occasions just this year alone.

``If you don't have a formal process for catering then you don't know if there are other catering companies that would like to have a chance,'' Parks said.

Vollmer, a 35-year resident of Thousand Oaks, said she was singled out by Parks because of her involvement in the anti-Zeanah campaign.

``The fact is, I've been doing business with the city ever since the city incorporated. They continue to use my business because I know how they like things done, and when we know we are going to do a big job we can offer a better rate,'' Vollmer said.

Last year, the Plug Nickel collected $9,486.45 in catering bills from the city - the most of any catering company or restaurant. Specifically, Vollmer's family-owned business was commissioned for the volunteer barbecue at a cost of $6,500, with additional work catering a supervisor training session, volunteer luncheons as well as several City Council meals.

Lazz said the Plug Nickel was selected for those functions - including the volunteer barbecue - over the past two years, because it offered competitive rates and good food. Although the bidding process is not formal, she said city staffers are expected to shop around for estimates before selecting a particular company.

``If it's going to be a bigger event with a couple hundred people, then we always get an informal quote,'' Lazz said.

The Warner Center Marriott earned $3,428.76 from city functions on top of its formal concessions contract for theater events. Most of those funds were spent hosting full-day training sessions for various city employee departments, a budget task force meeting and an awards banquet.