Haverhill Mayor James J. Fiorentini displays a new 64-gallon toter.
The city is holding tonight the first in a series of public hearings on the automated trash pickup system which will go into effect later this spring.
Division of Public Works (DPW) staff will be on hand at 7 p.m., tonight, in room 301 at Haverhill City Hall to answer questions or address concerns from the public, according to Mayor James J. Fiorentini. Examples of trash toters, to be used at curbside by new trash trucks with a robotic arm, will be on display.
“Under the new plan, every household unit in the city will be given a free 64-gallon trash toter for their weekly trash pickup. (This is the equivalent of about two trash barrels.) Residents are encouraged to use their existing barrels for recycling. This is the same program that has been successfully used in many other cities in the state and throughout the country for many years,” Fiorentini said.
As WHAV reported last December, city councilors, including William J. Macek and Mary Ellen Daly O’Brien, told DPW Director Michael K. Stankovich they want the new trash pickup system to work under “a comprehensive plan” and public awareness efforts. At the time, Stankovich said the new program would begin either early or late April, depending on the arrival of the new trucks and toters.
“If we’re going to do it, I’m going to work as hard as I can to make sure it is done in a comprehensive manner, that it’s not done in a similar version to the way we did parking,” Macek said at the time. “And I remember somebody said the night we put parking in, ‘Well, if it doesn’t work we can always fix it.’ And it began on a stutter step and I think it’s still on a stutter step. And I don’t want to see that happen with our trash and recycling pickup.”
“I truly do believe that we can get through this,” Daly O’Brien added. “All those other communities wouldn’t have been successful, but let’s figure out how we need to do it in Haverhill and keep in mind we do have those exceptions, whether it’s physical handicaps or aging, whatever the problem can be. I think that’s all I’m looking for but I am for this. I think it works.”
Bill Macek, your comments are spot on regarding the initial objective of the parking plan and the direction it took. The problem came in when it became clear to everyone that parking downtown was really a revenue generating scheme by mayor taxman. Several of your colleagues on the city council parking commission decided to jump ship and let it all happen because it was easier than fighting the fight for city taxpayers. Things might have turned out differently had they done what they were elected to do….fight for the folks who voted for them.
Mary Ellen Daly O’Brien…your constant support of the mayor’s goal of sucking every last penny from city taxpayers is disgusting. You’re comments earlier this week about the proposed parking on Ginty Blvd in front of the District Court with you proposing expanding paid parking to that area is proof. Your logic of saying people “expect to pay” when they go to a courthouse, as they do when they go to Salem District Court, is the sign of a deranged mind.
I currently have two toters that I purchased about 4 years ago. They are still in great shape and I wish I could use the ones I already have. It would be great if the toters could be used for recycling as well. It is a pain to have many trash cans for recycling especially when you live on 110. I wish this meeting notification had gone out sooner it’s the first time I have seen it.
In case I can’t make it to ask myself, or, something some of you pols reading this should inquire about:
1. What kind of molding is being used for the toters? Is it injection or rotational? If Capitol uses the brand name “Toter”, they use rotational according to their website. Rotational moldings last longer, as they are more pliable and don’t break as easily in the weather extremes that we have here in MA.
2. The truck being used also matters. Does the arm throw the trash “up and over”, or are the trucks front loading style where the driver can see everything? The “up and over” trucks appear to damage, destroy, or simply discard the toters into the truck.
“every household unit in the city will be given a free 64-gallon trash toter” – NOTHING is free, but given that Capitol was a higher bid and donated more generously than anyone else to Beacon Hill and area pols, “free” sounded nice.
That’s a great point. Because the current city policy with recycling bins is if it gets destroyed the homeowner has PAY the city to get a replacement. Which should be no surprise mayor taxman creating yet another fee to stick it to taxpayers.
This info should have been out earlier. What about any follow on hearings?