Never thought I’d see the day where I’m paying $15/month for recycling service.
But the folks at Phoenix Recycling say that if more people sign up they’ll lower the price.
Today was our first day with the service, and they performed as advertised. Don’t forget you get a $1 discount if you’re a member of a neighborhood organization.
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We are going to bite the financial bullet and pay for the service once we are back in our house. I won’t do it now for our hovel because I don’t wish that account following us.
A week ago, I sent Phoenix an email asking them to give me proof of their recycling process (how do I know they don’t just take the stuff to the nearest landfill and dump it?), and haven’t heard back from them. I didn’t mean to offend them with my question; at the same time, they’re obligated to provide an answer to my question if they want my money.
How could they possibly do something so nefarious when they have such a cool logo?
But you’re right, Maitri, they should answer that question.
Pay to recycle? I’m appalled! I guess this is where my b-town mind really sticks out. They should answer the email.
Lee, I guess I should have noted that we used to have “free” curbside recycling. Of course it wasn’t free, but paid for along with garbage collection as a part of our water bill, I believe. Anyway, that ended with Katrina. The city negotiated new garbage contracts months ago, and recycling was unaccountably omitted from the equation, despite the fact that the new contracts were quite a bit fatter than the old ones. In fact, I’m a little suspicious of the whole garbage deal.
Gotta be a really slim margin of profit for recycling, otherwise Sidney Torres of SDT would have jumped on this!
Also, Phoneix should answer your question!!!
We got pickup last Monday and they even called my cell to find out where we were. I don’t know if it’s possible to make recycling break even, but I do know that it’s our duty to make the effort. If there was convenient drop-off (all types of materials at one place, good hours on weekends), I might not pay for it.
Where are the empty bottles of Rioja?
Here in Seattle we pay for recycling with our garbage fee. Not sure what it is, but I am sure it ain’t cheap.
But they take damn near anything and you only have to separate glass from cans/paper/plastic. And they give you a big bin for that and another for yard waste, which is made into composte for the parks system.
That system, and none in existence, is cheap or ideal.
But it must be done.
I am glad to see this is happening in NOLA, even if on a voluntary level.
In Seattle, the garbage police check your “trash”, and if has too many recylables you get a warning. Then you are fined. Then they quit picking up your garbage, and fine you until you are in compliance.
Write em again Maitri! Maybe the email got eaten in cyber land. I know the person who is in charge and he is great and they are wanting to provide a good service to the city!
I date one of the Phoenix guys and have been helping get his 7 year old to school the days we have him because Steven is out of the house each day at least by 7 am; there are two guys who are partners making this happen via Baton Rouge’s MRF, which is modelled and made of materials from one of the MRFs in Holland. They are trying to hire more drivers and help, but for now, they are settting up routes at night, responding to phone calls as they can, getting to emails as they have time, in between running these pickups around nola and back and forth to Baton Rouge, so if you could check their website, which went up a week ago, you may have your questions answered without a personal email response. I’m sure it’s just that they are so slammed re lack of email response.
Just so you know, there is no money to be made in curbside recycling; the gas and vehicles alone, not counting paying the one other driver they’ve found, have them in a position where they are operating at a major loss. These guys want to see it happen b/c as we all know, our landfill is overly full as it is. They are working a small commercial recycling pickup on the side, which hopefully will allow them to make enough for Steven to support his boy and himself, etc. Not there yet though.
Please check the website to get your questons answered, and if you have more questions, please call the phone number on the site. Steven will call you back as soon as he is able to.
Thanks. And thanks to those who responded re Phoenix so positively and for including the logo!
sorry; forgot to give you the site address
http://www.phoenixrecyclingnola.com
good to see folks talking about phoenix.
oh, yeah, by the way. when you have drop off points here; there is a major problem b/c unless it’s a drop off that is being monitored and loaded into trucks for direct delivery to a MRF for immediate separation by recycling facility, you have people putting stuff in wrong bins, leaving things that are not recyclable, like food stuf, etc…..this, as you might imagine, invites vermin, etc…..problems we don’t need to make more of down here in our fair village. so when Baton Rouge does do its drop off days, they load directly into trucks for delivery to their recycling facility in BR. Also, glass is a big problem as there is no one really around recycling it right now BR is taking it and keeps it in a large pile at their facility. We are looking into the possibility of a pulverizer, and I’m researching studies done before the storm to see if we can re-use crushed glass to reduce the erosion of our coast and wetlands; we will need financial help to purchase the pulverizer, but we are looking into it.
Good luck to’em as they are already having problems with BROKEN DOWN pick-up trucks!
With all due respect to Jennifer and Michelle, I also had/have some doubts about the veracity of the business, particularly early on in the process. Neighborhood groups got a big pitch of “pay us the large sum of $15 per month to recycle”, but no other information was provided– no business address, no phone number, no email. The website is now up, and has some of those items, but they consist of a PO Box, a g-mail address, and still no solid information on the process. The local Better Business Bureau has no information on the business. I’m very much in favor of recycling, but for $180 a year, I need real information, not just personal assurances.
actually; the nola chamber of commerce has called them to promote them in the business community; the phone number is on the website and they’ll be glad to talk w/ you; they’re interviewed in an article in citibusiness a few weeks ago; also phoenix was THE company that did residential recycling here before the nola city contract was even offered in the early ’90’s. the business phone is 914-0739. steven lives on lowerline near freret and burthe; they are working the routes etc. out of his house, so he’s not using it as the business address but has the po box; if they were making tons of cash and could afford an office, they’d give an office address. pls call him and talk w/ him; he will respond to your call; if you leave a vm, pls let him know that you are calling and were on the blog talking w/ me, b/c i mentioned to him that i had responded on here.
i know w/ everything that’s gone down here in our lovely village, it’s difficult to trust, but at least follow up for your own sake and for the sake of helping keep yours and others waste, that could be salvaged, out of the landfill.
hope this helps others; i won’t be checking this blog again, as i’m a psych therapist in private practice and too busy to keep typing all this, but i hope this helps those w/ questions. take care.
At first glance, I thought the price was very high just to take my newspapers and aluminum cans to a recycling center. Since we have a choice, it is not really “price gouging” in the classic sense. However, on closer inspection, it seems we are getting “shamed” into signing up @ $180/year. We are being told it is not a good idea to leave recyclables at the monthly drop off because of “vermin”. Furthermore, the Green Project has mysteriously “closed” its recyclable drop off right after Phoenix came on the scene. (Could these 2 groups be related?) With that reasoning, Phoenix has a monopoly on convenient recycling. Wake up, people. The price won’t go down until there is a competing company, or a city contract bid.
On the other hand, Barney, if Phoenix enjoys broad support, it will motivate others to jump in the market, creating the competition you desire.
Yes, another choice would help, and I support the effort by Phoenix. The less privileged may see their choices disappear, and be less inclined to participate in the recycling effort. Some type of reassurance about the price decrease (other than blogging) would help. Many of us will probably wait until we (hopefully) get a reasonable city contract. They do have a cool logo. BTW, why is green project closed?
Hey,
It’s Michelle from August Phoenix discussions…..listen, I made a big mistake giving out Steven’s home cell; I’m so busy w/ being a thera’pest’ down here that I don’t know much re blogs, etc. I should not have given his personal cell, b/c apparently, while he can hardly get back to all the emails and phoenix business line calls, he’s now getting tons of calls on his personal cell, ….please, do me a big favor b/c I’m a blog novice, and just call the phoenix number, which he answers regularly unless already on the phone or in a (what turned out to be purported as she cancelled today) meeting w/ Veronica White…..yep, it’s true…shocking, eh? I mean she’s usually SOOO Available for folks like us to check in w/!!
Phoenix 504.914.0729
website: http://www.phoenixrecyclingnola.com
Just thought I’d post here that we had our third pick up today and are very please to have this convenient service. In addition, I’d like to add that it is a paid service that is run like a SERVICE and have been very responsive:
1. We get email reminders of pickup
2. The first pickup they called me to verify how to find the address
3. My pickup today was not done when I got home just before 5PM – I emailed and it was picked up before 8:30PM as I write this.
So we’re paying more than we paid before, but we’re getting great service.
Wow – and after posting this and before going out to bring in the bins, another guy from Phoenix showed up at the front door to check on the pickup!
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