Let’s Talk Trash
Who says Temple is lacking in culture? Why just last Friday I snapped the first two photos (from left) with my handy-dandy Treo. While we could spend a considerable amount of time critiquing both of these avant-garde public displays of art I think it might be a tad bit more productive to discuss the unlimited viewing opportunities that will be bestowed upon us by your City Council. It wasn’t so long ago that piles of garbage like these would litter neighborhood streets all over town. Often times the lucky neighbors would get the benefit to appreciate it for close to three weeks before the City would retire it to a more appropriate setting. A couple of years ago the Council instituted a policy that set specific pick up days for this type of art as well as brush. The policy required people to assemble their front yard monuments the day before a pick up or pay for the privilege of having it removed. The brush provision generated a large volume of complaints and now we are throwing out the baby with the proverbial bath water. Instead of modifying the policy to be more accommodating to the brush issue we are punting on the policy in general. The plan as of now is to pick up, free of charge, anything people can set out. The catch is that it could take up to nine days for the City to pick up the garbage. This change will be viewed by some on the Council as increasing the level of service for the community. I think it is a big step backwards. Is it really in the community’s best interest to encourage the dumping of trash on our front lawns? The photo on the right was taken four days later on Labor Day. Somebody sure labored to make a mess. Is this really the direction we need to be moving?
Tags: brush, Solid Waste, trash