CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED:
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Approve the award of Cooperative Procurement 26-243, Roadway Salt, to Morton Salt and Compass Minerals America, Inc. for an amount not to exceed $1,211,916
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DEPARTMENT: Department of Public Works
SUBMITTED BY: Dan Randolph, P.E., Director
BOARD/COMMISSION REVIEW:
N/A
BACKGROUND:
The Department of Public Works (DPW) requires roadway salt to support the City’s winter snow and ice control operations. Over the years, DPW staff have taken measures to limit the use of salt due to its high cost and environmental impacts. Specifically, DPW has modified procedures for salting cul-de-sacs, reduced application rates when conditions warrant, and postponed the application of salt on residential streets, including cul-de-sacs, until after plowing is complete in certain circumstances. Over the past ten years, the City has used an average of 11,400 tons of salt per year. During the mild 2025-2026 winter season, the City used approximately 7,400 tons of salt.
The City has two salt dome locations, one at the Public Works Service Center and one near Plainfield/Naperville Road. The City’s standard protocol is to have both salt domes substantially full at the beginning of the winter season and to prepare for an average-to-moderately heavy winter season. This initial salt supply not only provides the City with enough salt for application during a typical winter season (based on a five-year average) but also eliminates the need to rely on delivery during the winter, which can often be delayed and more expensive.
The City has several options for procuring roadway salt, including conducting its own bid for summer delivery and participating in cooperative purchasing programs offered by the State of Illinois and DuPage County. For the 2026-2027 winter season, the City participated in the State of Illinois cooperative purchasing program because it has historically provided more favorable pricing.
Under the standard State program, the City is required to estimate and submit its anticipated salt requirements by April for the upcoming winter season. The City is then obligated to purchase a minimum of 80% of the requested quantity, while the awarded vendor is required to make up to 120% of the requested quantity available to the City upon request. This structure provides the City with a reliable supply while maintaining flexibility to adjust purchases based on actual winter weather conditions.
The State bid requires the City to submit a separate salt quantity request for each storage dome location. Vendors submit pricing for each location, and the lowest responsible bidder is selected for each location. This approach accounts for variations in transportation costs, which can significantly affect the delivered price of salt depending on the distance between the supplier and each storage facility.
In April, the City requested a total of 9,000 tons of roadway salt through the State of Illinois cooperative purchasing program for the 2026-2027 winter season.
DISCUSSION:
On July 28, 2026, the State of Illinois notified the City that no bids were received for the Public Works Service Center salt storage location. The City was provided with two options: independently procure roadway salt or remain in the State’s procurement process for emergency sourcing. The State advised that there was no guarantee it would be able to secure salt for the City’s location through the emergency sourcing process due to the limited availability of rock salt in the current market. The City did receive a bid through the state program for 3,000 tons of salt for the salt dome located near Naperville/Plainfield Road at a price of $143.96 per ton.
Due to the limited availability of salt, uncertainty surrounding the State’s emergency sourcing process, and the need to secure an adequate supply for winter operations, the City Manager approved an emergency procurement on August 3, 2026, pursuant to Section 1-9B-4-8, Emergency Procurements, of the Naperville Procurement Code. The emergency procurement authorizes funding for the purchase of 4,000 tons of roadway salt at $113.50 per ton from Midwest Salt LLC. In addition, the City elected to remain in the State of Illinois procurement process for the emergency sourcing of an additional 5,000 tons.
The City will enter into State cooperative contracts for each salt dome based upon the low bidder for each location.
• Public Work Service Center: Cooperative Contract 27-416CMS-BOSS4-P-102536 through vendor Compass Minerals America, Inc. at a price of $115.61 per ton
• Plainfield/Naperville Road Cooperative Contract 27-416CMS-BOSS4-P-100326 through vendor Morton Salt Inc. at a price of $143.96 per ton
It is anticipated that a minimum of 5,000 tons will be needed at the Public Works Service Center and 3,000 tons will be needed at Plainfield/Naperville Road. The City will have the ability to order up to 9,600 tons.
The term of this contract is from the date of award to September 30, 2027.
FISCAL IMPACT:
CIP#:NA
Emergency roadway salt is being expensed to the Salt and Chemicals accounts listed below. While the Department of Public Works included funds in the 2026 budget for roadway salt, this additional unbudgeted purchase is required due to unforeseen market conditions for salt.
It is anticipated that the roadway salt purchase can be supported within the 2026 Budget through savings identified on underspending across other programs and the use of fund balance. In the event these unforeseen expenses result in a budget overage, the General Fund has sufficient fund balance reserves to cover the additional costs.
|
Account Number |
Fund Description |
Total Budget |
|
31251100-541409 |
General Fund |
$592,750 |
|
31251200-541409 |
Commuter Fund |
$70,000 |