Harry sends in some photos from Salutation Street this week after being fed up with improper disposal and placing trash that allows it to be run over by passing vehicles. He says, “It actually took a took a non-resident to clean up. Don’t the residents have any shame? They might be anonymous but they know who they are? Character is what you display when no one is watching.”
Filthiest street in the North End.
It looks lie Salutation st is in need of some sanitation.
Salutation street is a great street and is usually much cleaner than that. Respect Salu.
I go to the church on this street (green awning: Boston Harbor Community Church) & it IS usually much better than this, but it is still a HUGE problem. We help North End each spring (the Boston Shines Project) to clean this street as well as other parts of the North End. I’ve never seen Salutation Street this bad, and I’ve been coming to church there (once or twice a week) for over 4 years, but I think that there are a lot of valid points made here about the problem. Residents and visitors should respect the North End. (It’s beautiful when it’s clean!)
Let the City put out the Cameras on all of our problem streets, whether it be Trash or Noise and
let us get rid of these MISFIITS for once & for all, it has been going on for Far Too Long.
Weather your an original NEender a former NEender a current NEender or just a person Who frequents the neighborhood everyone should be disgusted and appalled by this and it isnt isolated to just one street.Between this problem and the lax ENFORCEMENT of the resident parking stickers the area is going in the wrong direction.
Reality folks, not a problem with a solution as long as the following issues are not addressed:
_
One of the biggest contributors to the conditions we find our streets after garbage collection is the fact that our city and our neighborhood are under attack by trash scavengers, yes those people that pick through our garbage for recyclables, ripping the bags open directly contributing to spillage.
_Another undeniable fact is that many in our community don’t bag their rubbish appropriately.
_The city’s contractor in charge of garbage collection does not pride it self in delivering good service, as a matter of fact the opposite can be witness three times a week during collection (elected officials should take the time to follow the garbage trucks around and make their own conclusions).
_The terrible fashion in witch some of the most outspoken neighborhood business leaders dispose of their garbage (30 gallon bags in enormous piles on the sidewalks spilling fluids and garbage in addition to blocking access) I challenge you all to take a late night stroll and identify those offenders and bring it up to their attention and the proper authorities. Hypocrisy best describes their attitude and behavior.
_The undeniable fact that the small over priced effort by the City of Boston to provide garbage barrels for the disposal of the trash produced by our pedestrian visitors is at the list inadequate and that most of the “solar power trash barrel compactors” don’t work, are filthy, unattended and not enough to handle the human volume that walks our streets. Not to talk about the fact that each of these “Green barrels” cost a lot of green (over $3500.00 each) a budget that could afford us a conventional garbage barrel in every corner.
_The naive or dishonest believe by our city’s public works department that mechanical street sweeping is the solution, when the reality is that it has only became disruptive to our quality of life, an additional unfair tax on vehicle owners (ticketing and towing), a revenue sour for the city and most definitely not a solution, OUR STREETS ARE STILL FILTHY.
Addressing these issues would be a good start, keeping in mind that we have all sorts of other concerns that need to be addressed. It would be refreshing some day to read about how some of the problems were solved; unfortunately as long as the mad science behind solutions is more of the same nothing will change.
Well put, Jorge. I think the trash pickers/scavengers are a significant part of the problem. They lead to ripped open bags, which inevitably spill everywhere. It’s arguably not the trash collectors job to pick up every little piece of trash that has spilled all over the sidewalks – I’m sure their contract states that their job is to pick up BAGGED trash.
Yes, the pickers create more trash by ripping open the bags to get at cans and bottles, but in reality we can stop this problem as a community pretty easily. The city has made recycling very easy in this neighborhood…all you need is a clear plastic bag once a week. If everyone (or even just a vast majority) stopped throwing away your recyclables, the pickers would stop coming to the North End except Thursday nights, and then they can see the bottles/cans through the clear bags. To make it even easier you could do a small bit of sorting and have your bottles and cans in a separate bag. This would both make the streets a little cleaner and save some wastage of recyclables.
Putting cans and bottles with deposits in a clear plastic recycle bag will not solve anything. It makes it easier for the trash pickers to see where to tear the hole in the bag, Once trash is on the sidewalk, it is open season. They can rifle through the bags and the cops can do nothing. Getting rid of the bottle deposit is the only way to stop this. Since that will never happen and the new crop of people running for office want to expand what has deposits to water bottles among others, the problem will get worse.
Truth. The scavengers are creating incredible messes. The trash collectors make a strong effort to gather as much strewn about debris as possible. The onus of cleaning up after the scavengers, however, should not be placed on them. Not sure how to deter the scavengers, but from personal experience, interfacing with them is useless. They do litter (obviously) and maybe if enforced, the associated fines will make their effort unprofitable.
What fines? Do you think the police or inspectional services are going to have someone hanging out on trash nights to shadow the trash pickers and write them tickets? that would be a major waste of scarce resources. I have found that if you ask the “scavengers” as you call them to not rip open the bags and/or to retie them , many of them will comply. on rare occassions when someone pretends not to understand English when I tell them not to rip open bags, I have found a simple “Do you understand ICE” to be an effective deterrent.
The bottom line is, like it or not, it is pretty much up to the Trash haulers and the landlords to clean up the debris on trash pick-up days.
DISGRACEFUL ! ! !
Incomprehensible – yes that’s right. The North End has been like this for a long time! Boston City Hall has no clue what they are doing – they spend taxpayers money on foolish trash receptacles that are not monitored, street cleaning keeps some of their employees on the payroll, trash cans should be the only way to dispose of rubbish and recyclable materials and totally ban the use of plastic bags altogether.
Do these same people who litter their streets litter their homes this way????
Shame on everyone – protest the City of Boston – demand action to keep North End streets and sidewalks free of litter – we are paying their salaries with our tax monies.
Are you not embarrassed when tourists visit one of the United States most historical cities and see all the trash-ladened sidewalks and streets with cigarette butts, candy wrappers, water bottles, etc. Enough complaining citizens of the North End – take a stand against Boston City Hall – get their crews vigilantly working to keep our city clean. Write letters to Mayor Menino and inundate City Hall with phone calls – enough is enough!
BD, I agree with you that trash cans for residents would help keep the litter down, but where would you have people store their trash cans? I have a 400 square foot apartment for 2 people…I have absolutely nowhere to stash some trash cans. Requiring cans or dumpsters for residents would be nice, but it is very impractical in reality in a neighborhood this condensed.
Has anyone ever mentioned cutting trash pick up to 2 days a week? I don’t even put out trash on Wednesdays most weeks. Or I just leave a bag or two in my kitchen to keep trash off of the street that one day.
Why have the trash barrels in front of Mike’s Pastry been removed?
Some people know exactly who are the trash offenders are .It may be their friends, roomates or acquaintances or their guests that visit over the weekend.Some people tried to lay the blame on the feasts but I have walked the streets of the NE in the dead of winter and witnessed the trash and garbage left out on the sidewalks after the weekend parties.I find it hard to belive that with all the smart phones that everyone down here walk around with there aren’t any pictures of people doing this.Maybe by posting their photos public humiliation will put an end to this.
For years, now~~~I place a plastic bag on my front steps on garbage nights, with any size or shape depositable cans,bottles etc.~~~~I speak to everyone that has gone near my garbage bags~~~AND TOLD them, DO NOT PICK AT MY GARBAGE, OR~~~I will have you arrested ~~~~~~If you DO NOT see a plastic bag on my steps, that means, I HAVE NONE~~~~or, Someone ALREADY TOOK THEM ! ! ! It does work !!! Ask any of my former tenants!!!!
FYI~~~the only way to stop them right now, is to threaten arrest ! They do not want to get deported ~~~~they like this Country !!!! Believe me, I feel bad for anyone who needs this NICKLE !!!!! If I see them, I admonish them, and give them a buck !!!!
Only problem is you can’t have them arrested…it isn’t legal to pick through your trash, so I can’t wait for the day when they inform you please call the police because they can’t do anything about it.
I like the mention of arrest~~~~it could be a deterrent !!!!
I THINK~~~your trash is your OWN Property until it gets picked up???? I am going to check on this question at the next Safety Meeting~~~September 5, 2013. Thank You for bringing this up !!
Janet,
At one of the PSM, this question was asked and Captain Lee said that once you put the trash out on the sidewalk it is public property and there is nothing the police can do about the trash pickers rifling through the bagss. You can ask him again but this is what he said the last time it was brought up. (I saw it on Matt’s video of the meeting)
J
I did forget what Captain Lee had said~~~~thank you for the reminder ~~~~
For the most part, these pickers are NOT BOLD, ABRASIVE, DRUNK or COCKY FRESH PEOPLE !!!!!
They may cause problems, but they are poor, insecure, and probably homeless immigrants ????
The fear of getting in trouble is more than answering back, they will probably move on ??
Maybe if you do separate your cans from your garbage bags, we could all live a little happier ????? Try it !!!