Down in the dumps

Taking out the trash isn't easy on Compton Street.

Andrea Lamirante discovered that last week, when she was given a citation for illegal dumping.

Garbage pick-up in the area is on Thursday mornings. A city bylaw stipulates that each housing unit can place a maximum of two garbage bags on the curb after 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

"My garbage day (was) June 15 but I had it out (before) 5 p.m.," Lamirante said.

Lamirante rents from Kingston and Frontenac Housing Corporation, which provides re ntgeared- to-income and rent-supplemented housing units.

According to Lamirante, tenants haven't been provided with suitable garbage disposal bins -- something she says is stipulated in her lease.

Lamirante said there were bins for residents until about two years ago.

"How can I follow the bylaw if housing isn't following the lease?" she said.

"Put the bins back."

Bylaw enforcement officers have come to her neighbourhood twice in the past week.

"They ripped (garbage) all apart," she said, adding that the officers were searching for clues as to who left the garbage.

CEO for Kingston and Frontenac Housing Corporation Mary Lynn Cousins Brame said a standard lease doesn't require that landlords provide bins.

"(It) states garbage must be tightly wrapped and disposed of as directed by the landlord," she said, adding that the bins were removed for good reason.

"Some of our sites do have bins and others don't," Cousins Brame said. "The bins were removed because of illegal dumping."

On Compton Street, there's been a history of garbage disposal mismanagement, she said.

"There had been fires in the garbage bins," she said, adding that this was another reason for their removal.

Garbage is put on the street throughout the week, Cousins Brame said, violating the city's bylaw.

"The tenants are not following the rules of putting garbage out," she said.

In an attempt to address the issue, Cousins Brame said tenants have been provided with three additional methods of garbage removal following City pick-up.

"Kingston and Frontenac Housing spends a tremendous amount of money on garbage (removal)," she said. "We work closely with the city to ensure the properties are well-maintained."

Cousins Brame said Browning- Ferris Industries was contracted out to clean up extra waste.

In addition, a smaller waste management company is on call and two summer students have been hired to help out.

Private Trash Removal Means People Can Write Garbage Disposal ...

When many of the baby boomers in the world were growing up, they took the idea of trash removal for granted. Many of these people felt that the people who picked up the trash were employees of the city, and did not realize the cost behind the service. In todays world it has become apparent that the companies that haul away the garbage are no longer city run companies but are rather private companies that are contracted by the city. Because it is a private company, there are all websites that allow people to write garbage disposal reviews about these companies. It is easy to complain about the way that a government employee does something, but when a company is contracted to do the work, the opinions of the people who receive the service matter more. If the customers are not happy a city can look for a new company to take over the process when the contract runs out. The cost of the service is important, but so is the quality of the service.

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