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Jun 03, 2023

Massena village trustees set public hearing to discuss using paper bags for leaf pickup

Reporter/Editor Massena residents can drop off leaves at the old Department of

Reporter/Editor

Massena residents can drop off leaves at the old Department of Public Works site on South Main Street. If they choose to have them picked up curbside by the Department of Public Works, they may have to be bagged in paper trash bags rather than plastic starting in the fall. Christopher Lenney/Watertown Daily Times

MASSENA — Paper bags may be in the future for village of Massena residents who want to put their leaves by the curb for pickup by the Department of Public Works.

Village trustees will hold a public hearing on July 18 to amend the village code to require paper bags be used in place of plastic bags for curbside pickup. Plastic bags can still be used for individuals who take their leaves directly to the former Department of Public Works site on South Main Street.

"I think it needs to go into the code book that we’re going to go to paper bags and paper bags only. Paper bags just speeds up the process," Department of Public Works Superintendent Marty G. Miller told trustees Tuesday.

He said one of the reasons curbside picking is taking so long is because the DPW employees have to rip the plastic bags open and dump the leaves into the refuse truck. They would be able to throw the paper bags directly into the refuse truck without opening them.

"I brought it up last year and I think it needs to go in there that plastic is no longer," Mr. Miller said. "We’re probably one of the only communities here that is still allowing this. They’ve gone to paper."

Mayor Gregory M. Paquin said they could shoot for the fall to institute the change.

"We’ve got time if this is something that we want to do. We want that done by I would say July or August at the latest. That way we can kind of do a media blitz on that," he said.

Trustees agreed to set a public hearing for July 18 to amend the code.

They also discussed brush pickup, saying individuals are still going "above and beyond" with the amount of brush they’re placing curbside for pickup by the Department of Public Works. Mr. Paquin had raised that concern during April's meeting.

"At the end of the day I don't know how to stop that," Mr. Miller said. "We’ve made numerous rounds throughout the village. I know it's in the code book how much you’re supposed to put out there, but there's some abuse. At the end of the day, though, the DPW in the past and the present and the future are going to continue to pick it up. But, it's just taken some more time than we’d like and some things are going to change. I think the change will be for the better."

Among the changes, he said, is they plan to map out areas for different timeframes starting next year.

"I’m going to have village area one, area two, area three, area four, and you’ll have two designated weeks within that timeframe for each area to pick up leaves and brush," Mr. Miller said. "At the end of May or first week of June, you’ll have to take it to the old DPW site (until curbside pickup resumes in the fall). We’ve been leaving the gate open. We’ve had some real positive feedback on that. Nobody's abused it. It's been working out pretty well, and that benefits not only DPW, but it benefits people. Seven days a week they can take their brush there. I do appreciate everybody that's used it the way we intended it to be used."

Johnson Newspapers 7.1

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