IV Waste awarded one-year emergency contract in French Quarter

Waste hauler IV Waste has been awarded a one-year emergency contract for sanitation services in the French Quarter and Downtown Development District in New Orleans, Louisiana. 

As reported by The Times-Picayune, IV Waste’s owner, Sidney Torres, had the lowest bid among four bidders at $5.9 million and expects to begin service on Dec. 23. 

The emergency bidding process was initiated after Mayor LaToya Cantrell's administration failed to secure city council approval for a long-term contract with Henry Consulting. The proposed eight-year, $73 million agreement with Henry Consulting was the highest-scoring submission in a professional services solicitation to the city.

The decision comes after weeks of uncertainty regarding who would handle the city’s waste collection. Henry Consulting has requested a civil district court judge to force the council to proceed with its existing contract. In contrast, another vendor, Ramelli Waste, claims the original solicitation was invalid because it treated sanitation like professional service contracts, typically not awarded on a low-bid basis. 

Judge Paulette Irons heard both cases on Dec. 16, as reported by WWL, and ordered that the city council move forward with the Henry Consulting contract. However, the city council appealed the judge’s ruling, stating that an emergency contract does not require the council’s approval. 

Council President Helena Moreno praised the Cantrell administration’s decision, The Times-Picayune reports, stating it was necessary to ensure “there is no gap in critical sanitation services throughout the French Quarter, particularly during some of our busiest times.”

Moreno and Council Vice President JP Morrell criticized the Henry Consulting contract award last month after a subcontractor, Richard’s Disposal, Inc., claimed the prime had pulled a “bait and switch” on payment terms after winning the contract rights. Henry’s owner, Troy Henry, denies the allegation, which is now the subject of a lawsuit from Richard’s.

Moreno and Morrell also questioned nearly $500,000 added to the annual contract amount during negotiations, The Times-Picayune reports. 

The Cantrell administration said in a Dec. 10 statement that it hoped Henry Consulting’s contract would still be executed but had issued the emergency solicitation to ensure continuity of services.

IV Waste is one of the largest trash haulers in the city, servicing roughly 70 percent of locations outside of the French Quarter and Downtown Development District.