The Future for the Blue Garbage Bags
People have long complained about the City's use of the blue garbage bags for the collection of trash in Hudson. Garbage and trash--except for recyclable items--will not be picked up by the Department of Public Works unless it is contained in an authorized blue plastic bag, and those blue plastic bags can only be purchased at City Hall on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The inconvenience of buying the bags is a problem for many and is often cited as the reason people resort to dumping trash illegally. It seemed in the past to be an insoluble problem, but it will soon be solved.*
DPW superintendent Rob Perry announced last night at the Common Council Public Works Committee meeting that a vending machine will soon be installed outside City Hall that will dispense blue garbage bags twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and accept cash, credit and debit cards, and even Apple Pay.
The machine, which will be tucked in between the columns of the stately 1907 former bank building that is now City Hall, will not, Perry assures us, have the gaudy appearance of the machine shown as an example in the picture above. Instead, its "skin" will replicate the marble on the building's facade.
* A Footnote: In the category of post hoc ergo propter hoc, the introduction of the vending machine means the elimination of three part-time jobs selling garbage bags. One of those jobs was held for many years by the mother of former long-time mayor Rick Scalera. Mrs. Scalera, however, retired from that job not long ago.
COPYRIGHT 2017 CAROLE OSTERINK
Perhaps it would be better to place the vending machine in the lobby of our brand new police station, where it would be safe from the elements, thieves and vandals. (An argument could be made that the Fedex box seen in the photo should be moved somewhere else, too.)
ReplyDeleteWhy not ditch the cheesy-looking "City Hall Hudson" sign at the top of the building, too? It detracts from the dignity of the building.
ReplyDeleteI'm sad to see the three ladies lose their jobs to a machine. And I will miss chatting with Daphne. Another piece of Hudson's quirky charm is lost and a chance for human to human interaction is lost.
ReplyDeleteWhen will City Hall be made ADA compliant?
ReplyDeleteAt least going forward people with disabilities will be able to purchase garbage bags. Will the machine be ADA compliant? I.e., the credit card/cash insertion slots and buttons to select amounts must be in reach of someone in a motorized wheelchair or on a walker.