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Local hauler tells DeSoto Parish committee parish dumpster rentals are undercutting small businesses
Summary
A DeSoto Parish hauler told the administrative committee the parish’s $100 dumpster rental option undercuts private providers and asked that rentals be limited to residents or made competitive; jurors asked staff to investigate.
Donnie Averitt, who identified himself at the meeting as owner of Averitt’s Landscaping, told the DeSoto Parish Administrative Committee that parish dumpster rentals are harming his business.
"When I haul 10 loads to the landfill and it cost me $1,800 for 10 loads … the parish is renting them out for $100. That's that hurts small business," Averitt said during the public‑comment period.
Averitt said he was told parish dumpsters were being used by businesses and that he had photographs showing parish‑marked dumpsters at commercial locations. He asked the committee to make parish rentals competitive with private companies or limit them to residents and emergency cleanup use.
Jurors and staff responded that dumpsters are intended for resident cleanup and emergency use, that the landfill office manager monitors and documents requests, and that jurors will follow up with staff to verify how requests are being approved and documented. "If we were to reach out to them, they should have documentation showing who called to get this dumpster," one juror said.
Committee members asked staff to report back with documentation and to clarify whether the landfill is improperly providing dumpsters to commercial users. There was no committee action on the matter during the meeting; jurors asked for a staff follow‑up and additional information at a later meeting.
Next steps: staff will check landfill records and caller documentation and report the findings to the committee.
