Small Business owner Bob Harris, 63, of Garbage Services, lost his business by failing to be low bidder for his town. Harris said he would not have minded losing out to the low bidder, which was Liberty Waste and Recycling of Tampa. Liberty's bid was $3.1 million versus WMI's of $3.7 million! "I don't think it was done fair," said Harris. They kept talking about us all coming in and working it out together. Whether it was power or knowledge or money or whatever, I ain't going to say, but it was something," Harris told the St. Petersburg Times.
Waste Management also treated county officials to a party with hundreds of tempting desserts at the Florida Association of Counties conference in Orlando. In addition they gave campaign contributions to commissioners in the past.
Liberty's bid was $1.92 a month less than WMI's but the commission rejected it because Liberty had been in exisitance for less than a year. Even though it is led by former WMI employees with great expertise and the contract allowed the commission to cancel any contract if service is poor, the commission went with WMI. Regarding the protest, WMI's district manager.Rick Chancey said., "I just don't undertand that, Everything we've ever done has been aboveboard. Just because we're trying to work as hard as we can to continue working in Hernando County doesn't make us unethical."
Staff had recommended Liberty for the contract. For them it was an open-and-shut case. "To me it's slam dunk," said Jim Gantt, the county's purchasing director. "You're talking about a cost differential of at least $600,000, as compared with what they are paying now, for at least the same service they are getting now, if not double." At the commission meeting Gantt criticized Waste Management's lobbying techniques, calling them the worst he has seen in twenty years. He cited INFACT's listing them for its "Hall of Shame" award for "exerting undue influence over political decision making." The Hernando contract certainly shows that WMI's new management has not changed that ugly WMI style!
The saddest part of the story is what happens to Bob Harris of Garbage Services. His goal was to retire in July and live on the money he would make from selling his business. But his dream of a good retirement fell apart when the Hernando County Commission took the contract away and awarded it to Waste Management. WMI underbid Harris by $2.25 per month. Harris reported that the decision makes his business worthless. "I don't know what all has happened," Harris painfully said. "For 30 years, I thought I would have a pension here when I was able to sell out. It seems so very unfair." Harris said he would ask for reconsideration, but no further information has been available.
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