JEFFERSON PARISH, La. — Residents in unincorporated Jefferson Parish and the Town of Jean Lafitte will be waiting a little longer for recycling service to resume.
Metairie resident Amy Armbruster said she's upset that her recycling hasn't been picked up for a month.
“No lapse should have interrupted service at all, but you know, we’re talking politics. They never do anything right," Armbruster said, "It's just not acceptable what this council has allowed to go on. If they were going to change companies, they should have had this way before it changed."
Councilman At-Large Scott Walker had said the contract would likely be finalized with Ramelli Waste at Wednesday's JP Council meeting, but instead, the measure was moved for deferral.
Until the contract is finalized, any recycling you put out will likely end up in the trash, the council said on Wednesday.
Councilwoman At-Large Jennifer Van Vrancken and Walker indicated there was confusion over the contract and whether or not customers would all receive new rolling recycling carts, or if you would have to request a new cart.
“This did come up late yesterday. Obviously, we’ve all been dealing with, we had the holiday on Monday, the MLK holiday, and we had the frigid weather and making sure things were as they needed to be. I would prefer to have something in writing that we can all eyeball as council members and feel comfortable with," Van Vrancken said.
“If we are actually implementing this program, and everybody in the parish is paying for this program, then we shouldn’t put the onus on our citizens to then hunt down a recycling bin. Because we know how that goes with going to our website to sign up for Christmas tree pickup. Or go to our website for this or that," Walker said.
Christmas trees were another recycling woe that Walker brought up.
Walker said residents across the parish, including himself, did not have their Christmas trees picked up on time.
“Going forward, we have to do better," Walker said.
Walker's Chief of Staff said residents should leave trees on the curb, and they will be picked up soon.
Armbruster's tree was one of many that littered Bonnabel Blvd. on Wednesday afternoon.
“It’s a shame because these trees because these trees could be used to help rebuild our eroding coastal areas, and they’re just wasting away down here," Armbruster said.
Walker asked the parish for a plan for next year that gives the garbage company, River Birch, the proper time to do the tree recycling right.
The parish said residents will not be charged for recycling until the service resumes.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.