[StBernard] (no subject)

[Westley Annis]

New garbage cans stink for Quarter, residents say
Friday, December 22, 2006
By Michelle Krupa
Staff writer 

The notion of dragging a garbage can inside his French Quarter home every
day is enough to make Louis Sahuc groan. But without a shed or even a small
yard to store the bin, which the city will provide free as part of a new
trash-collection contract, Sahuc might have little choice. 

"Even in my 1,700-square-foot apartment, I would not have a place to put
this unless it's in the middle of the room," he said. "I can't imagine any
civilized human being wanting to have a trash cart in the middle of their
living room." 

But Sahuc, who also owns a photography studio in the French Quarter, said
indoor storage will be one of his only options after a new city vendor
distributes the receptacles as part of an $8.9 million contract for daily
pickup of household garbage in the French Quarter, Central Business
District, Warehouse District and along Frenchmen Street, between Decatur and
Royal streets. 

Though the cans, which are about 3 feet tall and hold more than 30 gallons
of garbage, are not expected to be handed out until the spring, residents
and shop owners have voiced concerns that the service, though well-intended,
is ill-suited to their neighborhoods. 

With contractor SDT Waste & Debris Services of Chalmette set to start on
Jan. 2, albeit without the new trash bins, opponents worry that unless they
can stave off plans for the new cans now, they will be powerless to stop
them until after the seven-year deal expires. 


Fears of can clutter 


The complaints are varied. Residents and business owners say the
standard-issue bins -- designed to be hoisted by mechanized arms that tip
refuse into trucks -- are too big for tiny downtown lots and that leaving
them out would clutter up sidewalks, not to mention violate city rules. 

They also say their current garbage collection, provided through a citywide
contract with Waste Management, is adequate. The problem with trash,
particularly in the French Quarter, has nothing to do with high-tech
receptacles, they say, but with sludge that flows from some
less-than-sanitary businesses, as well as litter, which falls largely out of
public trash cans and is best collected by hand. 

Some opponents also worry that with household trash collection scheduled
between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. daily, residents will have to put out their cans
before heading to work in the morning and perhaps leave them out after going
to bed, meaning the French Quarter's quaint streets will be dotted with
black plastic bins at all hours. 

City Sanitation Director Veronica White has said the service, dubbed
"semiautomated" because of the robotic arms on the back of garbage trucks,
will cut down on litter because the plastic cans have lids to keep rodents
out. She also said the city is accommodating the needs of downtown residents
by requiring smaller carts than the 96-gallon bins being provided to
residents in other parts of the city through two other new contracts. 


Going for 'Disneylike' 


The deals are part of Nagin's second-term initiative to improve trash pickup
citywide and are worth more than $33 million, not including the cost of
dumping trash at a landfill. 

Nagin has touted the downtown contract as a way to bring "Disneylike"
cleanliness to the city's tourism hub. Trash will be picked up at least once
daily, streets and sidewalks swept mechanically, and stiff fines imposed for
shoddy service. 

Nathan Chapman, president of the Vieux Carre Property Owners, Residents and
Associates, said he is pleased with some sections of the SDT contract,
including requirements for street sweeping and the threat of fines. But he
said city officials should have talked with residents before inking a
contract that includes new trash bins. 

In an effort to perhaps alter the terms, Chapman and Sahuc met this week
with White and City Councilman James Carter, whose district includes the
area. He said White declined to consider changing the standardized cart
requirement or other terms of the contract, which was inked Wednesday,
according to the vendor. To add insult to injury, she recommended that
residents who have limited outdoor space store their bins inside their
homes, Chapman and Sahuc said. 

"It's a shame that they really didn't ask for resident comment before they
started signing contracts on this," Chapman said. "I applaud the intention
of trying to make things better. But they're saying, 'It's too late now, and
this is how it's going to be.' " 


Search for compromise 


Carter said there could be some easy solutions to the problems that might
not cause so much "friction between the parties." 

For instance, he suggested making the carts optional. He also suggested that
there could be central bins for each block that neighbors could share. 

"I think the city was excited about what they strongly believe in, which is
the cleanliness of the city," Carter said, and did not intend to "erode the
beautiful intricacies of the French Quarter." 

White did not respond to e-mailed questions asking her to clarify her
position and to explain whether the city is considering changing the cart
requirement or pickup hours in downtown areas. 

Regarding the carts' size, Lesley Eugene, who works in the mayor's press
office, said the city has required SDT to provide 32-gallon carts. However,
the firm's president, Sidney Torres, said the bins will have a volume of 35
gallons. Information provided by the vendor, Cascade Engineering of
Michigan, shows that it manufactures 35-gallon carts that weigh 19 pounds
and are 19 inches wide, 23 3/4 deep and 37 1/<v-b0.42 inches tall, including
the lid. 

Torres said he, or a representative of his company, has attended several
meetings of downtown residents and business owners and has been in touch
with Carter's office about residents' concerns. But he said that in the end,
his company will live up to the terms of its contract. 

"My position is very simple: that we have a contract with the city of New
Orleans, and we're following their guidelines," Torres said. "We're all
ears, but at the end of the day, we work for the city." 

. . . . . . . 

Michelle Krupa can be reached at mkrupa at timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3312.