Why is Lowndes County suing a local business for the benefit of investors in New York City? I guess we’ve discovered the litigation last month’s Lowndes County Commission executive session was about. Why is this a good use of taxpayer money?

On Deep South Sanitation’s facebook page yesterday,

Friends, we all watch the news and we see governments making changes that are unacceptable to the American people. Well, it is happening right here in our hometown. LOWNDES COUNTY has issued a CIVIL ACTION LAWSUIT against DEEP SOUTH. The preliminary hearing is set for FRIDAY, JUNE 14, 2013 at 9:30AM in Courtroom 5D of the Lowndes County Judicial Complex. The purpose of the hearing is to force DEEP SOUTH to shutdown on that day! (We are a small, local, family owned and operated business.) We need your support because this hearing will effect almost every one of you. “IF” we are forced out, Advanced Disposal will be your “ONLY CHOICE” for garbage service. That means there will be a MONOPOLY for garbage service in Lowndes. The County maintains that it is not MANDATORY for the citizens to use Advanced Disposal so then who else can we choose? CHOICE keeps business healthy and HONEST. Please help support this matter for your sake and ours by calling LOWNDES COUNTY and voice your concerns. Also, there are several petitions being sent around as of today. We personally thank each and every one of you!! From: Cary, Debbie, Trevor, Dylan and Sadee Scarborough

Unnamed Lowndes County “representatives” spelled out in the VDT back in January that

“According to the solid waste ordinance, Advanced Disposal will be the only residential hauler licensed to serve unincorporated Lowndes County.”

A few hours later yesterday, also on DSS’s facebook page,

Regarding the Lawsuit against Deep South Sanitation by Lowndes County: The County’s grounds for the lawsuit is based on the agreement they made with Advanced Disposal to be the sole provider of residential garbage disposal service in Lowndes County. In a “normal” exclusive contract for garbage service, the City / County will collect the funds from the citizens via property tax and then in turn, issue payment to the service provider. This is not the case here in Lowndes. Even if it were so, the citizens always have a choice. The whole purpose of the lawsuit is to force Deep South out of business so that Advanced Disposal has sole ownership of all garbage services in the unincorporated areas of Lowndes County which is basically all of Lowndes County. Please call us anytime at 229-559-0200 or call Lowndes County at 229-671-2400. Thanks again for your generous support.

The same Commission that was not willing to exercise the termination clause in the ADS contract after lack of performance that caused Dave Shepler, regional manager of Advanced Disposal, to reschedule from Biloxi to come apologize; that same Lowndes County Commission finds time and money to sue a local business that is doing its job. Does that seem right to you?

The same Lowndes County Commission that can’t even produce a list of the 5,000 people to whom it sold solid waste collection center cards. The same Lowndes County Commission that sent an unsigned letter to those 5,000 residents saying sign up with ADS or else. (The “or else” turned out to be or the county will fine anybody who leaves trash by the road; how many such cases “are prosecuted successfully”?) It’s curious the county knew who to send those letters to, yet can’t produce a list of who they sent them to. The same Lowndes County Commission that ignored public objections over years and closed those solid waste sites and granted a monopoly to ADS.

The same Lowndes County Commission that closed the only access to the Alapaha River in Lowndes County against the wishes of hundreds of petitioners because the one applicant might sue; that Commission now finds funds to start its own lawsuit against a local business.

Why does this County Commission care more about investors in New York City than it does about you the taxpayers or a local business?

-jsq

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