A Fresno company has filed a claim against Oxnard, alleging the city owes more than $600,000 for three garbage trucks it purchased last year.

The City Attorney's Office said it plans to resolve the dispute but notes it first must address another issue related to the firing of former solid waste manager Don Smith.

"The whole matter is part of what's involved in the Don Smith matter, and it's (still) being investigated," Assistant City Attorney Alan Holmberg said Wednesday.

According to the Aug. 1 claim, Central Valley GMC Inc. charged the city with failing to pay the agreed upon price and "reasonable rental value" for three side-loading refuse trucks. Side loaders use mechanical hooks to grab refuse or recycle cans from the street, hoist them over the side of the truck and dump the contents in a large container behind the cab.

In July 2006, the city purchased 14 trucks from Central Valley, including side-loaders, front loaders and other types. The deal included three side-loaders for $547,890.

The trucks are being used, but the city of Oxnard never paid for them, said René Lastreto II, a Fresno attorney representing Central Valley. Lastreto said the company refused to deliver the other 11 trucks because the city never paid for the first three — a charge disputed by Holmberg.

Central Valley then asked the city to rent the trucks if there was no intention of paying for them, Lastreto said. Rental charges to date come to $54,789, according to the claim. The company is seeking the rental fees and purchase price of the trucks, a total of $602,679.

Holmberg said the city met with Central Valley to hash out the dispute about two months ago. He declined to provide details but said the city paid $14,652 in November toward the three vehicles.

Asked why the city has not paid the balance, Holmberg said: "All I can say is we want to get a little further along in this (Smith) investigation before we make a final decision on what we're going to do in Central Valley trucking."

Smith was fired in March. City officials have declined comment, saying it's a personnel matter. Smith appealed the decision later the same month. A resolution is pending, City Attorney Gary Gillig said recently.

According to previous interviews with his ex-wife, Smith was fired over allegations of violating purchasing procedures. But he has denied any wrongdoing.

Resolving Central Valley's claim will require looking at how the city bought the trucks, Holmberg said.

"There are questions about whether proper procedures were followed in ordering those trucks," Holmberg said. "We don't have any purchase-order documents, contracts of sale, anything like that."

Lastreto said the company has provided the city with invoices, but it has no copies of any city purchasing documents.

Holmberg stopped short of saying whether Smith — as the city's then solid waste manager — was responsible for ordering the trucks.

At that time, any purchase exceeding $250,000 required approval by the city manager, Holmberg said.

As a "project manager," Smith's signature was not necessarily required, Holmberg said.

The claim names Smith, interim solid waste manager Dennis Scala and City Manager Ed Sotelo.

Smith did not return several phone messages left at his home. Scala also did not return a call for this report. And Sotelo is on vacation.

Claims are filed as formal requirements before lawsuits. The city has 45 days to respond, Lastreto said.

"Mr. Holmberg has never said the city is going to pay it, nor has he said the city is going to dispute it," Lastreto said. "If they say nothing, it's up to the client to take the next step."

Meanwhile, the city this week ran a legal ad in The Star, asking vendors to submit proposals for selling Oxnard more side-loading refuse trucks.

The city needs them to accommodate growth, Public Works Director Ken Ortega said Wednesday.

The legal ad means "we're making sure we go through the appropriate purchasing process," Ortega said.