Jackson Jambalaya

WTF? This saga is fascinating, at least as someone who left when incompetent leaders were elected 20 years ago, it is.

I cannot imagine living in this and paying the taxes the city residents do.

Free lance trash pick up.

PR Tour.

This my friends is what you call the “perception of garbage service”. Right? Right?

Watch what happens. They gonna keep picking up garbage as usual soon and then demand another fat check. The mayor will fight to have them paid and they’ll weasel back into being the vendor.

The 'Splain Train?

I would say they could be using stopping to audio and video folks and then use it in a social media marketing campaign for another contract. But, hey, maybe it's just a coincidence that they are out driving around and talking to folks in NEJ. Sure. Yeah. Just a post contract service survey. 5 stars. "I love me some Richard's garabage service!"

It's turning out to be like when I was a kid. You hear that ice cream truck song playing, and Dad says, "That music means they are out of ice cream!"

You hear the gahbidge truck sound and you too are disappointed. Dang, out of ice cream I mean, garbage pickup, again! Sad face.

A system or mode of action in which the strongest survive, presumably as animals in nature or as human beings whose activity is not regulated by the laws or ethics of civilization.

Richard's is turning out to be the Overly Attached Garbage Service.

"What do you mean, OTHER garbage companies?"

They are collecting signatures for a petition. Rather than enter into a short term emergency contract and start another RFP process, the mayor is going all in on the strategy of pressuring the council to approve the petition reportedly says the signatories support awarding the six year contract to Richards. They didn’t have a copy of the actual petition so I declined to sign it. They left my full garbage cans on the curb.

Richard's don't need no contract-

I bet it's a public service run to check on those poor folks that can't get up and to work.

Just picking up from the folks that support the mayor?

Richard’s is transitioning to providing lawn service. That elderly lady is holding can of ant poison. Those gentlemen are looking for the ant beds in her yard.

Correcting my sloppy comment above: the mayor and Richards are now trying to use a petition to pressure the council into approving the six year contract. I’m sure most people will sign without asking to read the language of the actual petition.

Is that a food truck parked in the driveway? Just lovely. Bet the neighbors are thrilled.

Making a delivery to the food truck.

The City Council rejected the Richards' proposal submitted by the Mayor Saturday (for the third or fourth time now), so the Mayor should issue a new RFP TODAY and get the process of finding another provider started. If he fails to do so, I hope everyone realizes, once again, that this problem is being caused and extended by the Mayor.

Mayor, the Council has made it crystal clear that they do not want Richards as our garbage service provider. So, respectfully, you should sit down and talk to the members of the Council about how to resolve the garbage issue, i.e. whether to enter into a temporary 6 month agreement with Richards while you issue a new RFP and negotiate with the other bidders, or whatever else may alleviate the situation. Do not demand, dictate, manipulate, intimidate, or threaten them as you've been doing. Actually sit down and talk in a professional and cooperative manner, and try to resolve the issue. Your above past methods of "negotiating" with them, if that's what you call it, didn't work, so it's time to try a more professional method that could likely work.

Both Waste Mgmt and FCC have made it clear that their costs would go up, and Richards has indicated that it will honor its prices quoted in 2021. So issue a new RFP, and Richards should win fair and square, right ?

They're trying to get people to sign a petition supporting RD getting the trash contract. They hit up my neighborhood in NE Jxn about 30 minutes ago.

Just go dump your trash in front of a certain Mayor's house. I'm sure they are still picking up there too.

The workers are out getting petitions signed. They are passing out flyers with all the council members contact information.

If they are promoting their selection by the City that may be against the law by messing with a formal selection process. That is unfair to other vendors. Sending goons around to gather names and break a few legs if needed.

Ask yourself, has any vendor ever had to campaign this hard for a bid award?
Most reputable companies win on merit and would never resort to this tactic.
Why is RDI willing to do free petition canvassing to keep this contract?

Its so sad that the majority of COJ residents do not care that Chuck is ignoring all rules/checks & balances that were put in place to PROTECT THEM from corrupt leaders They are simply too ignorant to understand and like cavemen, just chant "Trash pick up good" because they cannot see the big picture.
Good luck. This extremely uneducated majority is calling the shots now.

Several of us received text messages from 504 number - presumably Richards.

Did the Mayor's office give out our personal information to Richards to spam us?

'Bout to jump on that Morgan & Morgan train and get my TCPA violation money!

That’s not a petition. Doesn’t ask for anything. It’s a flyer.

Richards' knee-cappers sent them out to get signatures, or maybe they are the knee-cappers, right?

KF, I just have ONE question.

Richard's just got kicked out of New Orleans for awful service. Their only hope as a company is staying here trying to manipulate Jacksonians by underbidding. Storming our City Hall yelling and screaming, talking about not being able to feed their families. What about the WM workers(who were black and living in Jackson) who were fired in place of the Mayor's vendor? Not one tear was shed for them. We have tried to talk to Virgi about this but she is scared of the mayor and is ducking and dodging her residents in Belhaven.

Flyer says Richards will be giving away the trash cans to residents. First I’ve heard of this?

Previous mayors took bus tours of Jackson. I guess Chokwe is taking trash tours?

Is it too early to predict the re-emergence of WWI style "trench rats" due to the amount of corpses and garbage strewn about Jackson?

Asking for a friend who breeds rat terriers.

My suggestion is that Antar get a referral from Bennie and the White House for a competent Chinese garbage firm that meets the only criterion of not being white owned. Win win.

And WHO do you think got those flyers together???? Our Mayor and staff and with our money.

"RDI will give all homes a cart if they would like one."

So the carts aren't mandatory? Another wink, wink arrangement by Lumumba to sidestep the legal RFP process.

Oh I get it. Instead of picking up garbage, now they're distributing garbage.

Brian Grizzell was right about one thing. This is what contract steering looks like!

Richards Disposal Service is interfering with a garbage selection process by influencing people to select them. I really don't think Jackson can get another garbage service with the way Jackson treats other business. Look a Semiens. They got sued by Jackson for not installing water meters. The real problem was people in Jackson wasn't paying their water bills. They still don't pay their water bills.

Oh look the community organizer Mayor illegally hires a fellow community organizer garbage company. Birds of a feather...

Standing with 11:47. There are State of Mississippi Laws that must be followed when issuing contracts. All the Mayor has to do is follow the law. Take care of Jacksonians and follow the law. Richards will probably win the bid and all this hoopla will be over!

Just think, If the mayor "worked" this hard to get crime under control, there no need for HB1020.

Sign the petition or you will find a horse's head on your pillow, followed by broken knees, capiche?

IF every residential address in Jackson has garbage piling up then LumummmmmbA and his SistA Ruckussss should have garbage piling up in front of their houses as well. If not every citizen of Jackson should haul their garbage to where ever it is that LumummmmmbA lives and wait for the gate to open and hurl your garbage in to his yard, driveway and curb. It may give him a sense of what the city is going through.

So are they picking up garbage only for folks who sign the petition?

Comic sans?

This mayor is seriously INSANE! The definition being doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. But also, did you see him pitching a damn fit on television because he did not get his way? He has successfully manipulated some of our citizens into believing that the council members are the bad guys. NO! This is all Lumumba with his illegal veto and disrespecting and outright ignoring our mayor/council form of government. He is NOT a dictator! The Waste Management proposal was LOWER than Richard's without those ginormous cans that nobody needs. Now there is a photo of a spreadsheet on a computer screen attempting to make people believe that Richard's was lowest all along. I do feel sorry for the Richard's employees who are fighting for their jobs, but this mayor cannot be allowed to manipulate our entire city! Who knows the truth about his relationship with Richard's? This needs to come out!

All the hoppers and drivers will be the same workers regardless of the company.

This whole mess would make a good Netflix political thriller. I think we....common taxpayers....are seeing only the mid-section of a nasty, dirty river snake. The beginning is not visible. It's hidden in DC and/or Jackson muck The ending is being written and re-revised as we watch.

1:53: I believe he lives off Ridgewood, behind a gate and a wall, like a carpetbagger.

2:00 Harsh!

@1:03 Do you honestly believe there were no issues with the meters provided by and installed by Siemens? I can't tell if you're ignorant or stupid..... or both.

Your regular reminder that there is no way under Mississippi law to remove a mayor, no matter how reckless and lawless he acts.

Lil Choke thinks his trix of flooding City Hall with RDI employees during the vote and soliciting signatures from garbage trucks will force desperate fools to swallow his dicta.

It was embarassing when Jackson hit the national news because no one here was capable of running a water plant. How embarasing will it be when national news shows garbage piled in the streets? Is there no end to this incompetence?

Thugs shake down. This is not funny and is criminal.

Chokwe and his cronies also known as deadbeats of society… they have no shame

This game RDI is playing is ILLEGAL under State Law & considered bid steering by the Company wanting the bid! Do not sign anything! Ask to read the proposal!

I don't know...but I would offer (using my best imitation of an OJ Simpson-style perspective, "If I did it...") if I had a side-hustle delivery business AND a garbage pickup service I might continue to check on some of my best customers too. Just sayin'

I'm peddling this book/movie idea to all of my book publishers/made-for-TV movie show producers now.

I'm also standing with 11:47. I will not sign a petition favoring anybody. This is not s matter for the vote of the people; it's a matter of whether the city government will function. The mayor reminds me of a certain former President who, amazingly, is always right. When the mayor loses the next election, will he deny the result? Dear Lord, what a literal mess.

I would like for my family to meet and agree to have me committed.

Just put on the paperwork..."The dumbass sat here and read every damned one of these posts about farkin' garbage and petitions that don't exist and fliers and stinkin' rat-shit"

Any judge would agree with the family petition-to-commit.

My wife and daughter were walking the dog in the Eastover area today and were approached by an RDI truck and employee asking for signatures on a petition - no flyers were given. Surely State bid laws don't permit government contracts to be awarded on the basis of a company-sponsored petition? Some of you lawyers help out on this. It seems like this would also poison the RFP process. I wish the majority of the Council would get in front of this and call bull-shit.

2:34 "Do you honestly believe there were no issues with the meters provided by and installed by Siemens?" Siemens DID NOT install them. A boatload of brand new minority companies did, and they didn't know what they were doing. Siemans said "Phuck it" and walked when the local, predictable loudmouths started screaming racism. Meanwhile, the $90MM check they wrote us has $30MM going to the child mayor's buddy law firm in NYC, $60MM squandered away and our city will be paying on a $90Mm bond for 20 years.

His incompetence has no bounds.

Vendor Scenario Score Exp.. Score Price Score Monthly Cost
FCC 1x Week No Cart 88.10666667 56.6666667 31.4400 ($ 651,181)
FCC 1x Week + Cart 87.19666667 56.6666667 30.5300 ($ 786,656)
WM 1x Week + Cart 86.47666667 57.66666667 28.8100 ($ 833,760)
WM 1x Week No Cart 84.84666667 57.66666667 27.1800 ($ 753,300)
WM 2x Week No Cart 84.28666667 57.66666667 26.6200 ($ 858,060)
Richard's 1x Week + Cart 82.8333333 47.83333333 35.0000 ($ 686,250)
Richard's 1x Week No Cart 82.8333333 47.83333333 35.0000 ($ 585,000)
Richard's 2x Week + Cart 82.8333333 47.83333333 35.0000 ($ 756,000)
Richard's 2x Week No Cart 82.8333333 47.83333333 35.0000 ($ 652,500)
WM 2x Week + Cart 81.35666667 57.66666667 23.6900 ($ 1,116,720)
FCC 2x Week No Cart 80.80666667 56.6666667 24.1400 ($ 945,856)
FCC 2x Week + Cart 80.21666667 56.6666667 23.5500 ($ 1,123,342)

@2:52pm

If Lil Choke commits a felony, he's out. But lies, incompetency and purposely avoiding his duties (avoiding all his duties in this mayor's case), you're right, it takes another election to be rid of the scoundrel.

Misleading language on the flyer per usual... the mayor must have drafted it for RDI. They should at least have a small footnote clarifying that the $12 million in savings with RDI w/ cart vs. WM without cart is over 10 years (6 year base term + 4 years of optional extensions).

Flyer also implies that the 96 gallon carts are optional, which is true, but per the contract presented to the council, if you don't use the 96 gallon cart, you may put out your own cart, but specified a max capacity of 35 gallons for a customer's own container. So my perfectly good 64 gallon container would not be "approved" based on the contract language.

"Approved Container: means the Cart provided by the Contractor to the Customer or Customers’ other sturdy containers of no more than a 35-gallon capacity."

96 gallon cart aside, my biggest fault with RDI is likely the same reason that the 2x week no cart proposal from WM scored better in the blind rankings than RDI, despite it being more expensive - all we have to do is look to New Orleans and the multitude of articles about the difficulty they have had with trash collection (specifically in the areas RDI services).

And RDI's response to the complaints?? Their excuse is that they are being paid so much less than the companies servicing other parts of the city that they can't keep employees. So now NOLA is looking at paying them EXTRA on top of the contract price so that they can supposedly hire more employees and keep up their end of the agreement. They've gone from expecting 2x week service per their contract to just trying to ensure everyone is at least getting picked up 1x/week. An article as recent as 2023 quotes Richard saying he was pulling employees from Jackson to help with the backlog in NOLA.

Why in the world would we not expect something similar to happen to us in Jackson as soon as they are locked into a long-term contract if they are are a NOLA-based company and can't even service NOLA effectively - especially when we already see the writing on the wall with their low-ball offer vs. the other 2 respondents to the RFP, which were very close in price.

When will the mayor learn that when something sounds too good to be true, it probably is??

I fully expect our fees for garbage collection to increase regardless of who is selected, but I would love to know how much the city has in garbage fees receivable and how much they have collected in garbage fees from residents who haven't been paying their water bill, and have now had that water debt forgiven, excuse me... "relieved".

@12:29. You get the representation you vote for. Maybe you and all of your woke friends will realize this before the next election. Virgi does not give a shit about you.

Lil Choke hates being a marxist mayor who can't rule like Nero and Caligula. Eat his crazed dicta or be damned! For the little tyrant, slavish obedience is the duty of his subjects, while they smell his leaking sewer, bounce their bones across his streets, watch weeds grow through collapsed bridges, duck bullets from his urban savages, buy his dirty water and burn their garbage in his broken city.

Get an old steel oil drum with galvanized expanded steel top to burn your trash. Set it at the curb so your backyard isn't as smokey and Fire Dept can see it easily.

Meanwhile WLBT is laser focused on outing white reporters over 40 and celebrating that "Courtney Ann Jackson (won) first place in the General News category for her story on a Scott County man who rode out an April storm in his camper while clinging to his 90-pound pit bull."

Puplitzer Prize, fo shizzle. Not making this up. Face palm. And they were hooting and hollering on this master class in identity politics and rube reporting.

Thank God the pitbull survived to attack another elementary school someday. Whew.

2:00 - Comic Sans wins today. I laughed.

@3:58pm
Your numbers are not relevant or current.
There are no current comparable RFPs from potential vendors, because our little emperor has avoided his duty to solicit RFPs for months and months. Suddenly he jumps the Council with one "Do It Now" contract/proposal from one vendor, an eat this or starve ultimatum. Is that how you do business? Hell no. That's how mucked sludge food is served to prisoners!

Shouldn't those trucks be in New Orleans trying to catch up on all the uncollected Richard's garbage down there?

If it was 90 pounds it wasn't a pit bull. That is sort of like having a 50 pound chihuahua.

Winning any MAB award is like doing well in Single A baseball.

This is not legal.

At this point, I don't know why Waste Management would want to do business with the city of Jackson as long as this administration is in charge. There's some business you just don't need.

I wonder if the city is paying for the fuel to run this trucks around empty for political purposes….

The weight limit for Solid Waste (Garbage, Recycle, Organics) containers is as follows: The 96 gallon cart has a load limit of 335 lbs. The 64 gallon cart has a load limit of 225 lbs. The 48 gallon cart has a load limit of 165 lbs.

Name how many people can move 335 lbs to the street down a hill?? Really.

I just saw a rat in Belhaven that was so big it may have its own zip code.

Let’s start a petition a vote of no confidence with this administration.

Capitol City Sanitation District, uh oh

Who has the Mayor and Council member home addresses? Seems like ALL of them ought to start having their yards serve as a dump.

“ It was embarassing when Jackson hit the national news because no one here was capable of running a water plant. How embarasing will it be when national news shows garbage piled in the streets? Is there no end to this incompetence?
April 3, 2023 at 3:01 PM”
——————————————-

Ha!!! You think the media is going to highlight the incompetence of a black mayor? They can’t blame racism so they won’t mention this story. Ever

5:29. or that last fish Uncle Bob caught.

But, that's from their own webpage. It did catch my eye, not just for the triviality of the whole thing and its unaduterated 'Sip-ish-ness, but that remarkable weight. That's a big ole pittie.

And I bet the weight on their driver's license is not correct, either.

Miss Code Title 63: "Any vehicle used solely for the purpose of collecting solid waste, under a contract with any county, municipality, resident or business for the collection of solid waste may stop or stand on the road, street or highway for the sole purpose of collecting solid waste.  Such solid waste collection vehicle shall maintain hazard lights on the vehicle at all times that it is engaged in stopping or standing for the purpose of solid waste collection."

Not covered for stopping in the middle of the road to campaign for a contract, nor are they under contract anymore. Their insurance should not cover these trucks therefore. And they should be given a traffic citation as well.

Illegal solicitation and conflict of interest by the very company that stands to gain from a council-issued contract.

Mr. Grizzell and Mayor cry me a river of tears & save your LIES! You each were asked to start the RFP process months ago and see the info to all COJ Council members to read through like informed adults so they could make a decision based on FACTS not THREATS and LIES. Right? Did you once Chockwe admit YOU and YOU alone REFUSED to request RFP as REQUIRED BY STATE LAW without all the rhetoric. YOU already had two times in court and were overturned 2 times but did YOU MENTION THAT WHILE IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA a& to RID employees? Right? Not no, but heck no because your ego is TOO BIG. STATE LAW DOES NOT REQUIRE THE LOWEST BID! You must pick the best bid rated by specification & requirements & can go 5% abov lowest if it doesn’t meet the requirements! Be a grown up & stop Lying!

April 3, 2023 at 3:46 PM Great response. Drop the mike and take a bow.

I believe in this next election cycle a white dude could get elected running for mayor against Lil Choke LumummmmmbA.

I've seen people out taking pictures of piles of garbage in Jackson to be used as campaign signs in 2025.

I think Jackson won't survive to 2025.

Virgi doesn't give AF lol

RDI was charging way more than the proposal amount per month during the Emergency Contract. How are they going to decrease their cost on a new contract?

Ahhh the best was when the Major almost, I repeat ALMOSt started to cry over this on TV...What a clown.

"The 96 gallon cart has a load limit of 335 lbs. The 64 gallon cart has a load limit of 225 lbs. The 48 gallon cart has a load limit of 165 lbs."

Not only can most of us NOT handle those weights, nobody hanging on the back of a truck should be lifting and dumping them for 8 hours.

This whole shit-show is insane and should be a new series starring George Jefferson and Archie Bunker. Chokwe is George and David Holloway over at Waste Mgmt can be Archie.

Virgie can be Edith and Chock's sister can be Miz Jefferson.

Add a walk-on part for Stokes as Fred Sanford.

Meathead? Yep, Kingfish can handle that part.

When brains were given out Virgi thought they said trains and she missed hers.

KF: what are the current contracts that RDI has?

Lightfoot, Franklin & White isn't based in NYC and isn't close to being racially diverse. But Franklin won't let that get in the way of his systemic racism narratives.

Seriously - Somebody help me understand what is meant by 'without a cart'.

Does that mean that no carts will be in use or does it mean that the city or someone else will provide carts at no contracted cost to the customer or the city.

I'm going out on a limb and assuming that 'without a cart' does NOT mean each house will decide how to 'display' its garbage curbside.

However, in Madison, for example, we either put our garbage on the street in rolling cans (that WE purchased) OR simply in large plastic bags that WE purchased or, in a combination of both.

And actually in neither, as we can put whatever the hell we want curbside and the guys on the back of Waste Mgmt trucks sling it all.

Madison, for any of its shortcomings, has rational, citizen oriented, government.....unlike self serving Jackson politics.

@ 9:00, "without cart" simply means the vendor won't be supplying everyone a shiny new 96-gal garbage can. The "without cart" option is what Jackson has always had, at least in the 20 years I've lived here, without issue. The practice you describe in Madison is exactly what the "without cart" option means.

April 4, 2023 at 9:00 AM You asked about the cart.

The cart is a big trashcan that is provided by the trash company. So far, we've heard its free, maynot be free, and the company wanting to use them (Richards Disposal) doesn't have enough for Jackson.

The "selling" point with the cart is that it can be picked up by the trash truck (automated) and emptied, meaning less workers, less cost.

The reason the carts are a bad idea: elderly (how would they move them because these are much larger than a regular trash can), cost (you know its going to happen, replace stolen ones). Also, under our old contract with Waste Management, if you had a heavy trash day, you could put several of your trashcans out for pickup. With the cart, that's it, unless you want to buy a second one.

Also, you have to tie in who is supplying the carts, there's some money going back and forth there too. And of course there's the likelyhood of "passing" thoses costs down to the consumer (you and me).

The contract should have been for twice a week pickup, no carts. That's what some on the City Council were doing. The winning bid for that option is Waste Management. Unfortunately, the mayor wants a specific company on this contract. That's a no-no. And after all this time and all the fights, you have to ask yourself.....why is one person so adamantly fighting for 1 company when he isn't suppose to.

will the big garbage cans be re-used from the are where RD lost the contract in New Orleans?