FBI Probe Into Mt. Vernon Mob Trash Deals Renews Questions About County Trash Contracts, And Arm-Twisting of Legislators By Larry Schwartz

By Richard Blassberg

Last Thursday’s raid on Mount Vernon City Hall by some half dozen FBI agents, armed with a search warrant
for trash-hauling contracts and related documents, in the Department of Public Works and the Department
of Finance, netted eight large boxes of vouchers, canceled checks, contracts and other correspondence.

Following the raid some in White Plains, and throughout the County, were wondering if it was only a matter of time before the probe is widened, given lingering questions regarding the County’s dealings with certain carters over the past few years.

Questions continue regarding the trash-hauling contract between Westchester County and City Carting of Danbury, Connecticut. Approximately two years ago the County permitted a ve-year, $70 million contract with an existing hauler, that could have been renewed at the same cost, to run out, despite Environmental Facilities
Commissioner Anthony M. Landi’s admission that the hauler had been doing a good job and there really wasn’t any reason to discontinue his services. When asked at a meeting of the Solid Waste Committee of the County Legislature, chaired by Tom Abinanti, why it was that the County Executive’s Office would fail to renew the contract with the existing hauler at the same cost, for five more years; especially given the collusive and choreographed nature of competitive bidding with that industry, Commissioner Landi responded, “We wanted to test the waters.”

That response seemed both glib and ill-advised to this reporter, given the fact that County taxpayers would now be paying $87 million, a figure that has since substantially increased, for what they could continue to have had for $70 million. Additionally, concerns were raised at the time that the company the County was now entering into contract with, City Carting, was one that New York City had placed on its “Do Not Do Business With” list, because of the owner’s reported prior association with Tommy Milo and James Galante.

As my unexpected line of questioning continued, Larry Schwartz, who had been summoned from the ninth floor, suddenly appeared in the corridor at the door to the Legislature’s Committee Room and, one by one, pointed to legislators engaged in the meeting, motioning them into the hall and lobbying (to use a polite term) each and every one of them to support the deal with City Carting.