As reported by Randy Kraft at WFMZ-TV69, trash hauler J.P. Mascaro claims Allentown has broken bidding laws by failing to seek competitive bids for a new trash hauling contract scheduled to start next year. Attorney Bill Fox, Mascaro's General Counsel, insists those kinds of contracts must be competitively bid, but the City instead went the Request for Proposal Route. He adds that the City also violated the law by refusing to disclose the bids.
Mascaro lost out to Waste Management, and obviously has an agenda. Still, the points raised in his letters to City Council and the Mayor (you can read them here) are troubling and indicate to me that Fed Ed is as arrogant as ever.
Waste Managements PAC has been a regular Pawlowski donor, and gave him $1,000 for his U.S. Senate bid.
Today's one-liner: "The shortest way to the distinguishing excellence of any writer is through his hostile critics." Richard LeGallienne
Local Government TV
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Thursday, November 12, 2015
25 comments:
You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.
Oh please. Look back at the days when Mascaro had the contract. Guaranteed they gave to the mayor's campaign too.
ReplyDeleteIt certainly looks like they circumvented the law. Pretty typical. Just look at what Brownie's been doing in NorCo.
ReplyDelete$1,000, big fucking deal. Chump change. I understand the imications but creating a conspiracy is a bit far reaching. You havedone a good job here, don't spoil it. How about providing the running tab for the gubmint taking care of the Flecks? Has to be pretty thick by now. Wonder if feds are paying for Draftkings for Allison.
ReplyDeleteI had no time to make a detailed study of contributions made by Waste Management or its principals to Pawlowski. I just noted the $1,000 campaign contribution for the Senate race, and remember seeing that PAC on his state funding, too. I point out that Mascaro has an agenda of its own as well. But the law is the law, and it seems likely that Allentown bidding laws were violated. Read Fox' letters. Also, I have no interest in what some anonymous coward thinks is a good or bad job.
ReplyDeleteSingle hauler is just another form of pay to play.
ReplyDeleteBernie
ReplyDeleteWith all that going on in Allentown this story just might have legs.
After you write about Allentown's garbage issue, please devote an entry to what in the world has happened to Allentown's schools? Teacher thrown down flight of stairs and kicked and stumped? Where is the Superintendent? When he is held accountable? Who is ever going to teach in Allentown after the last three weeks of events?
ReplyDelete7:36,
ReplyDeleteWhat is going on in the schools is a reflection of what is happening in the city. Despite all the good news stories about A-Town poverty has continue to increase annually. This concentration of poverty is felt in the neighborhoods and in the schools. Blaming the school district for the violence issues is akin to holding victims responsible for crime.
Scott Armstrong
Agreed, Scott, but they don't hear you though.
ReplyDeleteAlfonso Todd
8:52
ReplyDeleteYou may be tired of hearing it but it is a fact. The students from poverty homes do not care about rules because many of them do not have them at home. They do not care about education because their parents do not have any nor do they care if their children do. They do care about receiving their welfare check and any other entitlements the working people provide through a government that wastes money on these entitlements. Take away the freebies and the scum will leave to where they can find them again.
Macsaro did a terrible job when they had the contract. There is no comparison between them and the current holder of the contract.
ReplyDeleteAs a resident homeowner in Allentown I hope we never go bck to Mascaro in mi lifetime.
Mascaro did do a terrible job. The streets were filled with trash that their employees left on the streets. Mascaro was fined many times for their missed pickups and throwing of recycling containers. Their employees were always load and would wake me up every pick up night. I rarely hear Waste Management crews on my pick up night. I also do Not want Allentown to ever go back to Mascaro.
ReplyDelete"After you write about Allentown's garbage issue, please devote an entry to what in the world has happened to Allentown's schools? Teacher thrown down flight of stairs and kicked and stumped? Where is the Superintendent? When he is held accountable? Who is ever going to teach in Allentown after the last three weeks of events?"
ReplyDeleteI don't write what already has been written unless I have something different. I don't. You are OT and if you have nothing to add to this discussion, don't comment.
Allentown......LOL. What a mess. Schools all messed up and you have to drive thru a war zone to get to the new arena area.
ReplyDeleteThe topic here is the trash hauler=, not Allentown in general or the schools. Stick to the topic, please.
ReplyDeleteAnyone who knows the municipal bidding business knows that RFPs open the door to lots of shenanigans. You're right to point out one of the bidder's political contributions. Sometimes the influence is softer, but no less dirty (e.g. Peg Ferraro and the ambulance contract to shore up re-election votes). Taxpayers routinely get screwed. The PA state contract (COSTARS) is another joke that costs municipalities more than they'd otherwise pay. They buy listed items and willingly overpay for options to avoid audits and lawsuits. It's cheaper to just pay up than it is to be threatened by an endlessly long line of lawyers. Allentown is about to find this out. Either way, taxpayers lose.
ReplyDeleteMore problems for the great city of Allentown...LOL.
ReplyDeleteBernie,
ReplyDeleteWith all the studies paid for with public monies, there should be money available to study local political parasitism that coincides with the effects to the innocent indigent populus that is directly learn Ed from the Browne hole cause and effect¿!$ There is even many public seats held in the deepining tiefoon of Allentown's water war MMO justi fiction circus¿!($
redd
patent pending
Just deleted an anonymous personal attack.
ReplyDeleteonce again after reading this story and all the other stories on this great site and others, it is very easy to understand why more people fear political corruption above all other issues. peoples faith in govt is almost non existent and both parties own it and could careless if you trust them or not. morals , ethics , and values mean nothing to the people.
ReplyDeleteall of these rules and laws are violated, yet no accountability, no one goes to jail.
ReplyDeleteI'M sure newly re-elected controller Koval will get to the bottom of this
ReplyDeleteWe don't need no stinkin' rules.
ReplyDeletePat Browne has a third DUI, and thru a quirk in the law, gets to play ARD. NO PUNISHMENT. And we wonder why kids act like they do? Greg Hard beats his girlfriend, gets the charges eventually tossed, and signs a multimillion dollar contract. It is not what we tell our kids, it is what we show them. They don't believe they will be held accountable, and why should they?
ReplyDeleteJP Mascaro sucks. TO be fair, I have no opinion on Allentown and Pawlowski, but JP Mascaro did not live up to the obligations of its contract in Freemansburg. Freemansburg tried to get rid of them, they sued and won.
ReplyDeleteDon't expect fair play out of the trash industry, I guess.
They might be right about Allentown, but they still suck!!