So, does the Parol Evidence Rule apply here?
A small town in eastern Tennessee discovered that by requiring commercial property owners to make their own arrangements for trash pick-up, the town would save $6,000 on landfill fees.
The town signs a new contract with the trash-pickup guy. What a brilliant political move - conserving taxpayer's money!
Three weeks later, the mayor comes blustering in to the council meeting: “He has not picked up city hall’s garbage for three weeks,” the mayor exclaims. “He says we are commercial which we are not and that if we want our garbage picked up we will have to get a dumpster or pay the dumping fee.”
The town council members are perplexed. "You mean we are paying him all that money and he won’t even pick up our garbage?" says one. And another wonders how come the trash-pickup guy isn't honoring a past agreement to pick up government trash.
A third council member has already checked this out with the town attorney (whom, it seems, nobody thought to consult before signing the contract); it's a problem with the way the contract is worded, he explains. The contract is only for residential trash pick-up. "Read the contract. We did this to ourselves."
The first council member retorts: "Then I guess our contract is worded wrong, isn’t it."
(I have a feeling this little town is stuck with the contract until it expires, so they'll just have to cart the bags of trash home to their own bins).
To see a photo of three-weeks worth of trash piled up outside city hall (a dire situation indeed), check out: http://www.hawkins.xtn.net/index.php?template=news.view.subscriber&table=news&newsid=125202
The town signs a new contract with the trash-pickup guy. What a brilliant political move - conserving taxpayer's money!
Three weeks later, the mayor comes blustering in to the council meeting: “He has not picked up city hall’s garbage for three weeks,” the mayor exclaims. “He says we are commercial which we are not and that if we want our garbage picked up we will have to get a dumpster or pay the dumping fee.”
The town council members are perplexed. "You mean we are paying him all that money and he won’t even pick up our garbage?" says one. And another wonders how come the trash-pickup guy isn't honoring a past agreement to pick up government trash.
A third council member has already checked this out with the town attorney (whom, it seems, nobody thought to consult before signing the contract); it's a problem with the way the contract is worded, he explains. The contract is only for residential trash pick-up. "Read the contract. We did this to ourselves."
The first council member retorts: "Then I guess our contract is worded wrong, isn’t it."
(I have a feeling this little town is stuck with the contract until it expires, so they'll just have to cart the bags of trash home to their own bins).
To see a photo of three-weeks worth of trash piled up outside city hall (a dire situation indeed), check out: http://www.hawkins.xtn.net/index.php?template=news.view.subscriber&table=news&newsid=125202
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