City's new garbage barrel questions answered

Troy residents soon will receive new, improved trash barrels in front of their homes free of charge, according to a City of Troy announcement. 

It is part of the city's "Clean Streets" initiative. The barrels will be delivered on a staggered schedule though Saturday, April 29. The aim is to reduce problems with litter and vermin, and reduce the risk of labor-related injury to the city workforce, says the announcement. Not all neighborhoods have been  given adequate barrels by the City over the years, and this project is an effort to have identical barrels throughout.

The problem with the City's announcements as well as local news media's coverage is that, although full of self-congratulatory quotes from City officials, certain key bits of information have not been disseminated.

On behalf of the Terrace, I connected with  City of Troy Account Clerk Javi Najera, the coordinator of the effort, to answer some key questions for us.

Q: The announcements seem to be targeting neighborhoods that may not have city-issued barrels, but that is not what the program details say. The Terrace has city-issued receptacles. When will we be getting the new barrels dropped off?

A: I'm not sure, but we are sticking to a schedule that will have all residences receiving a new container by April 29.

Q: Will our old containers be collected by the time we get the new ones?

A: No. Most residences will have both new and old containers simultaneously. We will announce pickup dates in early May for the old ones.

Q: Then what? Most residences do not have space to store an extra garbage barrel and some neighborhoods, such as ours, prohibit outdoor storage of garbage receptacles.

A: That might be a problem. We're trying to be sure everyone gets an equal opportunity to try the new barrels, but we know individual residences are different than association communities that have their own rules people have to follow.

Q: Would it be helpful if we were to issue a temporary abeyance so residents can keep one barrel outdoors until the swap-out is completed by the City?

A: That would be fantastic, and greatly appreciated.

Given the situation, I wished to issue such an abeyance, and when I polled the THC Board everyone was in agreement. As a result, Terrace residents will be able to store one garbage barrel outdoors during the transition period which will end when the City picks up the old containers some time in May.

But, we ask everyone to make an effort to put such outdoor barrels in a place as unobtrusive as possible, certainly not in front of garage doors where they would tend to stand out in an unsightly way.

-- Bill Dowd

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