April 2013
| Business World Magazine | 273
process in the islands due to the scarcity of
space and certain geologic properties often
evidenced more by hard rock than soft soil.
As Jimez says, “space is gold.”
“We don’t have the luxury of lots of land
space on an island that is only 32 square
miles. Every inch of space is gold and dirt
is gold, but since there is so little space and
so little dirt, one has to be very precise and
there’s no room for making mistakes,” says
Ashby.
In respect to the area landfills, it deserves
note that regulatory compliance deficiencies
occurring prior to Ashby’s management con-
tract led to scrutiny by the EPA who advised
it necessary to make a number of changes
to bring the landfills up to standard. Ashby
anticipates the territory will move toward
systems that allow for the capturing of waste
to convert into energy, but for now, the VI
Waste Management Authority (VIWMA)
has contracted with the Georgia firm of
Oasis Consulting to design landfill closure
plans.
Meanwhile, A9 continues to focus on the
core services it has long provided to the ter-
ritory, and it is still what Jimez calls “a fam-
ily affair.” Though Lester Ashby has recently
been contending with health concerns, the
values and principals he routinely promoted
to his children continue to be fostered in all
operational aspects of the company. In re-
flecting on those values, Jimez says his father
always insisted on keeping customers happy.
“He taught us the customer is always right
and we always have to be polite,” says Jimez.
