News-Leader columnist Steve Nicklas, who repeatedly criticizes city spending as wasteful, has been receiving unauthorized city garbage collection services for free for the past five years, according to city officials.
Nicklas lives in the county, pays no city taxes, and is not eligible to get city trash collection.
The estimated value of the city trash service, for which Nicklas was never billed, is about $1,500. If Nicklas had used Meridian Waste, which services Nassau County, he would have paid about $2,800 for trash/recycling collection during that time period.
“We’re fixing that problem right now,” said Jeremiah Glisson, public works operations director. “The properties on that street that are in the county will have to obtain outside garbage contracts. They cannot get city trash services.”
Nicklas resides at 4075 Dunewood Place near the city golf course. His property is in the county and thus not qualified to receive city trash collection services. There was a city recycling trash bin on Nicklas’ property this morning.
“Waste Management (the city trash company) made a mistake in distributing the trash bins to the county properties on Dunewood,” Glisson said. “Dunewood is a very narrow street with city properties on one side and county properties across the street. They’ve been getting free trash pickups for about five or four years now. That service is now over.”
Glisson said he became aware of the situation about two weeks ago. There are a total of three other Dunewood Place homes in the county that may have been getting the city trash service.
An employee of the City Utilities Department, which handles the billing for city trash collection, confirmed there were no charges listed for garbage collection at Nicklas’ address. According to public documents, there are also no trash collection charges at Nicklas’ home dating back to November 2018.
“As soon as we confirmed the situation with Waste Management we stopped trash service,” Glisson said. “We’ve notified the homeowners.”
As recently as last Friday, Nicklas’ News-Leader column, called “Steve’s Market Place,” lambasted the city, saying, “City officials are irresponsibly talking about frivolous spending on wish-list projects, along with raising exorbitant impact fees even more.”
The Observer sent Nicklas several emails asking for comment and finally this was his response: “You are not a legitimate journalist and you write for a joke of a publication!”
The City Utility Department did not respond to calls asking if the Dunewood homeowners would be billed for the past trash collection services they received.
So, would you characterize him as a thief or just an irresponsible, opportunistic homeowner who drives up the cost of city services that he is not entitled to?
Semantics. He knew he was receiving services without paying. That is stealing.
Those who see no harm in his actions should question their own integrity.
Rather than looking at this situation as Mr. Nicklas being a “thief” … that’s rather nasty … the real issue is that the City and its contractors are screwing up and providing services to people who aren’t supposed to get them. Gross mismanagement and incredibly poor oversight of a contractor. The situation is actually a perfect illustration of City stupidity. Gee, and who was on the City Commission all those years when this was going on? Yes, the author of the article. But please note that the City INTENTIONALLY provides all kinds of free or subsidized services to County residents and everyone seems quite fine with that.
Mike Lednovich is a juvenile for posting an article like this one. What a joke. Sounds like you were the genesis of this problem that you speak of in this article. You were on the city commission, so you own this screw up.
Shows Nicklaus character. A legitimate journalist concerned with city spending would have investigated why a county street was getting free trash service.
Knowing that he was receiving city services to which he was not entitled, a person with honesty and integrity would contact the city and ask questions.
This is why I love the Observer and canceled my subscription to the News Leader. Nicklas always gave me the creeps. Hope this shames him but it probably won’t.
Mike
If Steve or anyone else knowing receives services that their fellow taxpayers are paying for It’s wrong. I would hope they would reimburse their fellow citizens.
You were Mayor while this was going on. Who at the city is to blame for people (not just Steve but he’s the only person you mention) getting this free service they are not entitled to. I hope you would know. Seriously What repercussions should happen to those that allowed this to go on for so many years? I will guess nothing will happen to them and you won’t ask for any accountability from anybody at the City. I hope I’m wrong but unfortunately I pretty confident I’m right.
Seriously? You expect the current mayor or any past mayor to track individuals who are getting trash picked up? Remember, mayors and council members are hardly even a part-time gig!
More strawman and misrepresentations.
I never said Mike was to blame. I just pointed out that he was mayor when this was going on. True statement! I also said somebody at the city should be held responsible. You seem to disagree. Fine.
It’s really not that hard to understand. The city hired Waste Management. Waste Management allowed this to happen. It cost all of us who live in the city money. As their employer who at the city is responsible? I think there is over 200 city employees for a city with less than 14,000 people.
I love the statement the the Mayor and council members are hardly even part time. So we should hold them accountable for nothing especially the management of our tax payers dollars.
Hard to blame the trash contractor. The City limits are a crazy quilt, convoluted line that meanders in a mazy motion over the northern half of the island. The guy tossing the bins out 5 years ago (even if it was a city employee) may have never realized the line ran down such a narrow lane.
But certainly the 4 homes mistakenly getting this perk knew they were not in the City. I have spent many years listening to those on the island that reside outside our limits (like east of Citrona south of Lime) chortle, “we don’t pay those taxes” with a smile. The 4 properties should get a bill for past due services.
I’m just wondering how this came to light? Dunewood appears to be an out of the way lane for traffic. Most likely a neighbor on the City side.
The whole article/issue is much ado about nothing. It wasn’t uncovered by some “journalistic inquiry” but simply by the writer giving life to his personal animosity towards another writer. The City says they have no record of this person (or the others on that side of that street) having paid for their garbage service … OF COURSE NOT … they aren’t City residents and the City has no power to bill them. You really don’t know for sure or have evidence they received garbage collection services (though likely they did). Did our dandy sleuth observe cans in front of his house on more than just the one occasion cited? Obviously not or he would have raised this issue earlier. You can’t go back and bill for these past services that you: (1) can’t prove they received, (2) they aren’t City residents, and (3) the City and its contractor gave/offered them the garbage cans and literally invited them to receive the services. Did they ASK for the cans?
And why are all these COUNTY residents weighing in on their opinion on the subject? If they are concerned about the City coffers there is an easy remedy for that. The error was noted … the City says it will be fixed. All this article is really about is a hatred for Steve Nicklas who writes for another publication.
RC……I beg to differ. Integrity means something. If Nicklas would take from the City, because of their mistake, instead of telling them about the error, then that says something to me about that person’s character. Maybe most think it is “much ado about nothing”……but I would have said something…..especially if I was criticizing them for wasteful spending every week in the paper.
It seems obvious that someone on the City side of Dunewood, who is not a fan of Steve, blew this whistle. 5 years is a long time to have not rectified this situation on the part of Nicklas.
And when you rant about “COUNTY residents weighing in with their opinion”……has not Steve Nicklas been doing exactly that in his News Leader columns?
When Mr. Nicklas presents himself publicly and on a weekly basis as a harsh critic of the city, there are undoubtedly many people who have see things differently and have an incentive to investigate him. For all we know his Dunewood neighbors are his friends. This is a small town after all. Mr. Nicklas would do well to remember the old saying, “People who live in glass houses should not cast stones.”
I’m sorry. I never claimed to be a fan of Mr. Nicklas or his writings. I entirely agree that as a non-City resident he should butt out of talking about City business. But this whole story isn’t worthy of reporting. Sure, he seems to lack integrity. But we must also point out that this is a City operation … it is not an “honor system” … something the article does not address. Are there other streets where this is a problem … or are we just sticking our noses in Nicklas’s garbage because we don’t like him. Has our journalist investigated whether this is a problem elsewhere … that might be a story? No, it’s all very personal. If it was his neighbors they would have squealed long ago.
I’m glad you are a self-reported person of high integrity.
There is a difference between an honest mistake such as the city’s contractor delivering a trash can to Mr. Nicklas, and knowingly taking services that you have not paid for. Mr. Nicklas presents himself as an expert on city operations and finances. Either he knew that he was not paying for the trash services, or he is not nearly the expert he professes to be. Either way, an honest person would apologize and offer restitution to the city for the services rendered. Do you plan to pay up Mr. Nicklas?