Louisiana Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser is calling on the city of New Orleans to keep IV Waste as the full-time sanitation provider for the French Quarter. While making that call on Thursday, Nungesser accused two New Orleans city council members of working to push IV Waste off the job in favor of another contractor.
Nungesser told WWL's Scott on the Air that, based on what he's seen, there's no good reason for the city to replace IV Waste with another trash service provider. That's because, according to Nungesser, IV Waste and its owner, Sidney Torres, are invested in making the French Quarter and the downtown area the cleanest and best versions possible of themselves.
"Other than he does a phenominal job, no," Nungesser told WWL's Scoot on the Air when asked if he has any ties to Torres. "There was a guy with a scraper scraping the paint off of Jackson Square--I'm sure that's not in the contract--wiping down the posts, something you don't see any other contractor doing. He has a real pride and love for the city."
Nungesser admitted that Torres spent money to help Nungesser's office promote Love the Boot Week, an litter-removal effort sponsored by the lieutenant governor's office. However, Nungesser says his belief that Torres should keep the contract stems from the job Torres and IV Waste have done to keep French Quarter as clean as it's been over the last couple of months.
"We always try to short cut contractors and people that go out there and do a really good job, and I don't know how more people are not outraged that we keep giving contracts to a guy who is not in that business. I mean, he's a middleman. He got into a squabble with whoever he hired. They've come back now, and they've worked out their differences. Am I the only one who smells a rat here?"
Nungesser said he heard second-hand that councilmen Oliver Thomas and Eugene Green were working to give back the contract to Troy Henry and Henry Consulting, who in December won a $73.2 million contract to handle sanitation for the French Quarter and the Downtown Development District. However, a dispute between Henry and his subcontractor, Richard's Disposal, forced the city to issue an emergency contract to IV Waste to handle trash pickup downtown.
Thomas denied that anything nefarious is happening.
"All we did was: we had a hearing about the settlement of the dispute between Alvin Richards and Henry Consulting when Henry Consulting won the contract," Thomas said. "At that time, the pending dispute between Henry and Richards wound up in court. Because it wound up in court and because we were dealing with the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras, it was the prudent thing to do--and we voted for it--was for the administration to then move forward with an emergency contract. Period."
Thomas said the emergency contract with IV Waste has a clause that allows the city to recall it at any time. Thomas says now that Henry and Richards have settled their dispute, it's time for the city to enter into a contract with the company that won the bid process in December. However, Thomas says the council has not yet made a decision as to whether they will move forward with that contract.
Thomas said it was disheartening that Nungesser would repeat unfounded allegations without first checking with the people involved.
"I'm really taken aback and surprised by Lieutenant Governor Nungesser, especially when he's been under fire of allegations in the past," Thomas said.
WWL reached out to Councilman Green, but we have not yet heard back from him. However, our partners at NOLA.com report that Green will not sponsor a motion to award the full-time garbage contract to Henry Consulting. King told the newspaper that he supports the wishes of Councilman Freddie King, who represents the French Quarter.
King said on WWL Thursday that there's no good reason to take IV Waste off the job now.
"Mr. Torres and IV Waste have done a great job since they've been awarded this emergency contract," King said. "I've received phone calls from residents and businesses in the French Quarter asking that IV Waste remain the sanitation provider for the French Quarter. The French Quarter residents and businesses, they don't always see eye-to-eye on issues, but this is one issue that they agree, that IV should remain the sanitation provider."