Green Bay looks to ease rules about trash, recycling bin storage, which sparks frequent complaints
Some concerns about unsightly carts have proven unfounded. Complaints have often been \ Green Bay, Wisconsin, may remove the requirement that residents hide their trash and recycling carts from public view on non-pickup days, a decade after the city adopted the rule. The city's Improvement & Services Committee has recommended that the City Council change the rules to allow property owners more flexibility to store their garbage and recycling bins alongside their buildings on these non-collection days. The change was removed from verbiage that would have allowed storage of the carts in the front of homes. The revised rule would state that tipper carts may be stored alongside a building behind the building's face and do not need to be screened from view. The changes still require approval from the Green Bay City Council before they can go into effect.
Published : 10 months ago by , Green Bay Press-Gazette in Sports Environment
Green Bay looks to ease rules about trash, recycling bin storage, which sparks frequent complaints
GREEN BAY - Green Bay may shed its requirement residents hide their trash and recycling carts from public view on non-pickup days a decade after the city adopted the rule.
Residents' cart storage habits, the city's rules regarding it, and the bills property owners receive if they violate the rules have generated a regular stream of complaints and comments to both City Council members and the city's Department of Public Works staff.
The city's Improvement & Services Committee on Wednesday recommended the City Council change those rules to allow property owners more leeway to store their garbage and recycling bins alongside their buildings on non-collection days. Before approving the proposed change, the committee removed verbiage that would have allowed storage of the carts in the front of homes, like in front of a garage door, too.
The city in 2014 automated its trash and recycling pickup service. The change required property owners to buy the large blue recycling bins and green-and-gold garbage bins still used today. Council members and residents at the time were concerned the bins could be unsightly and stored willy-nilly on properties, so they adopted the rules still in place today.
The Council in 2014 included requirements to store the bins in a backyard or garage. Or, if you wanted to store the bins alongside your building, you would need to install an enclosure, a fence or a vegetative screen to hide the bins.
Council members Chris Wery and Jim Hutchison recently requested city staff review the cart storage rules. Wery, Hutchison and Council member Melinda Eck, a member of the committee, all said they routinely hear from constituents about garbage/recycling cart storage issues.
"It's an issue that comes up every couple months" in the form of complaints about other residents or questions from property owners who were cited for a violation, Hutchison said.
The city charged $38 per violation for carts not stored in an approved location in 2023.
City staff indicated the bins' appearance have "proven to be largely innocuous" and that nearby cities and villages allow residents to store carts in side yards without screening provided the bins are located behind the front façade of the house or building. The complaints and concerns residents have lodged with Public Works staff "appear to be petty in nature, with neighbors nitpicking on each other," according to the report to the committee.
The revised rule would state: "Tipper carts may be stored alongside a building behind the building face. Carts do not need to be screened from view." Backyard or garage storage remains acceptable.
Committee members inquired about how the changes would impact residents with corner lots, who effectively have two front yards facing city streets. Steve Grenier, the city's director of Public Works, said municipal codes give Public Works staff some leeway to approve special exceptions to municipal codes in such circumstances. The committee seemed OK with that approach.
The Green Bay City Council still must approve the changes before they go into effect. The Council is expected to consider the proposed changes when it meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 11.
Contact Jeff Bollier at (920) 431-8387 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @JeffBollier.
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