Monday, April 2, 2012

Clean City:Trash receptacle proposal-South Burlington City Council. Litter


AUGUST 2014 note to SB City Council

Hello city council members and city manager, planning representatives, 
Please see below, photos of public amenity trash and recycle receptacles purchased by BTV from @BigBellySolar they communicate wirelessly to save travel and the compactor uses solar.

Might the city consider such public amenities?







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To SB citizens, BTV has adopted a method of vaporizing or at least combating/compacting litter. Will South Burlington, VT, match this endeavor?


Community litter decreases home values by over 7% according to Natl Assn of Home Builders
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August 2014 note to SB city council members.
City Council members, city manager, planning representatives, 

Please view the attached photos taken on 7/30/2014, on what was the Burger King establishment on 1200 Williston Road.

 I can understand needing to have some patience to give time for resolution, however the littered trash situation is reaching multiple months, trash is accruing, and there appears to me that no attempt at resolution other than covering the top of the trash receptacle with plastic and tape, has taken place. 


 Are there city regulations and enforcement abilities to influence the site owners and managers, to maintain a litter-free site?








If Marketplace is our crown jewel, what is Williston Road (one of our main thoroughfares)? The above-mentioned situation, as the photos indicate, is not, in my opinion, the image we want thousands of commuters viewing as they drive through SB.



I would much rather publish photos of flowered and tree-canopied South Burlington business district landscapes and write of the green and clean community instead of highlighting the opportunity not yet taken for all businesses to maintain a green and clean landscape year-round.

I hope neighboring businesses join in the chorus to influence the errant few who do not recognize the benefit they can accrue from green and clean branding and who do not avail themselves to pride in place in our community.  

As a last resort, if gentle persuasion does not work, I ask the city council, city manager, and planning and development representatives, to consider more obligatory actions (regulations or other) along with enforcement capabilities. 

Bernie 
Love where you live.
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April, 2012 
Oral presentation to S.B. City council.

Hello, my name is Bernie 

Seth Godin advises: Find something worth changing, connect with others who have the same yearning, spread the idea, organize and lead. The idea becomes a movement.

My idea is to eradicate litter year-round in our community. Some of the objectives are:  

·        Promoting intolerance of littered trash.



·        Stigmatizing littering behavior and littered landscapes.



·        Increase awareness of hot spots through litter alerts.



·        And communicate directly with businesses reminding them of the opportunity for positive CLEAN branding through frequent site clean-up.



·         You may note on the handout I have several recommendations in which the city, businesses, non-profits, and residents might pursue litter eradication, however, for tonight I ask you to focus on one proposal within the objective of facilitating litter prevention.



·        The primary proposal tonight is for the City to establish and maintain trash receptacles and cigarette receptacles in public transition and high traffic areas.




·        Recommended trial locations include intervals along Williston Road, Dorset Street, Patchin Road, and Kennedy Drive.



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Written supporting documentation provided to City Council.

April  2, 2012

South Burlington City Council members, City Manager,
            
          How can the city of South Burlington enrich cultural and public policy, improve the city’s landscape while promoting an attitude of intolerance of litter and littering behavior?
          One way, I believe, is to establish and maintain public trash & cigarette receptacles at public-high traffic transition points where there is consistent litter accumulation. Two of the reasons people litter on the public domain are:

·        Litter has already accumulated. The more litter present the more people are inclined to litter.

·        Number, placement and appearance of disposal containers at or near the site.

o    Most folks do not want to litter. By providing servicing of receptacles at these transition points there is at least an improved opportunity to dispose of trash appropriately at these public locations.

Another method of litter prevention is continued focus on enforcement of,

Ø Trucks need to have their loads covered while on roads and highways.
Ø  Dumpster covers are kept closed and all materials placed inside should be in tied bags.
Litter Prevention starts with changing individuals and businesses' behavior and attitude about litter. Many South Burlington residents and businesses demonstrate their distaste for litter on Green-Up Day with a once-a-year clean-up of sidewalks, roadsides, streams, storefronts, and neighborhood lots. Sustaining the cleanup effort and focusing on litter prevention year-round can make South Burlington a city representative of a Green and Clean Vermont-branding worth earning.

A multi-faceted approach is necessary. “When education (information, knowledge), enforcement (penalizing offenders) and engineering (making it easy and convenient) are integrated, attitude and behavior change are more likely to occur simultaneously.” - Tasmania EPA
How the city government can help.
o    Establish and maintain trash receptacles and cigarette receptacles in transition and high traffic areas.
o   Recommended trial locations include intervals along the following streets: Williston Road, Dorset St, Patchin Road, and Kennedy Drive at a minimum.
o    Trashcans are available with grates to prevent large volumes of illegal trash dumping-if this is a concern. The city of Winooski has placed such receptacles.
o   Opportunity for a joint City/trash hauling business cooperative endeavor.

o   Sponsor summer jobs for youth litter patrols.

o   Park walk, clean-up and meet your neighbor events coordinated by Parks and Rec. dept.

o   Offer a sign-up sheet on the internet for Green-Up Day and Adopt a street for 1 yr. List all of SB streets. Publicize/promote through a High School outreach program. 

o   Create a Litter Alert program similar to Click and Fix Street and sidewalk program.

o   Facilitate Businesses for a clean retail district - outreach effort. Price Chopper on Hinesburg road is a good example of how bringing the problem to their attention resulted in renewed focus on their part, with tangible results week in and week out. 

*Thanks goes to the city of S.B. employees for their recent clean-up of litter on the green belts nearby the Williston rd. interstate 89 ramps and for their Street Sweeping work

How individuals can help.
·         Set an example by using trash receptacles.
·         Keep and use a litterbag and (if you smoke) an ashtray in your car.
·         Carry a litterbag with you when you walk or bicycle for your own trash as well as to pick up trash along your excursion.
·         Ensure your home's exterior trash cans and recycling containers are covered.
o    If blue bins are in use, consider using a board as a cover.
·         Adopt a neighborhood block or other targeted area to maintain as litter-free throughout the year.
·         Pick up after pets and dispose of the waste appropriately.
·         Compliment businesses that maintain a litter-free establishment.
·         (Residents can) Provide comments to businesses with property scarred by litter. (I have published a Clean-Up Coupon to facilitate this consumer to business communication@ http://litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/2012/02/clean-up-coupon.html

Recommended messaging to businesses in yet-to-be-determined media format.

To  community business owner, manager, and employees,
You are encouraged to walk around your establishment grounds, parking lot, as well as the adjoining sidewalk and public green space at regular intervals, whereupon maintaining a litter-free welcoming mat into your business. It seems an oversight to spend dollars on advertising and building face-lifts only to neglect simple maintenance like grounds (litter) clean up. Thank You for your expected renewed - regular attention to business and community beautification.

Creating Community. Community is not static. Community needs to be developed, sought, and nourished. Invite people to and encourage communally beneficial and non-exclusive activity like litter picking; that in turn develops community.

Let us all develop an attitude that it is not acceptable to walk past litter.
We as a community can become intolerant of littering behavior.

Bernie 
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Note: City council members and city Mgr. appeared supportive of the proposal and the general objective of litter eradication. Further exploratory review and discussion of the trash and cigarette receptacle proposal will be held.

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Other Commercial/Retail and city government postings:
      Ø  Will businesses cultivate Clean Branding?: http://litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/2012/11/will-vt-businesses-cultivate-clean.html








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