Allied Waste Steps In To Fill Sanchez's Shoes
By Kevin Robinson in News on Apr 3, 2009 2:20PM
Now that former Streets and Sanitation Commissioner and Hispanic Democratic Organization chief Al Sanchez has been convicted of corruption, we needn't worry about the city steering contracts or hiring their friends.
Except in the case of Allied Waste.
According to the Sun-Times, Allied Waste, has been awarded a three-year contract worth almost $18 million to supply the city with giant roll-off boxes for construction debris, and to haul them away to licensed disposal sites. Roll-off boxes are part of Chicago's strategy to end the scandal-plagued Hired Trucks program, which ended in multiple convictions and a separate investigation into city hiring. In 2004, as Chicago was trying to end the Hired Trucks program, Allied Waste got what was supposed to be a three year deal with the city, worth $2.4 million. That contract was extended by two years, and the contract was modified six times, increasing the original value of the contracts to almost $12 million. That contract has been rebid, but Allied Waste won once again, supplying the city with some 325 roll-off boxes, and round the clock pick up and drop off of waste at approved disposal sites.
Allied Waste has connections to both the HDO, which they and their subcontractors gave to heavily, and to Fred Barbara, who a grandson to Bruno Roti, Sr, one of the city's earliest crime bosses, and who's friends and family did quite well under the Hired Trucks program. Barbara now works for Allied Waste as an operations analyst, and gets monthly payments from them based on how much city trash is sent to one of their transfer stations.