Man About Canton: New Trash Service
By Joe DeFeliceDid you know …
The new automated trash and recycling program started in the town of Canton on July 7. Every homeowner received a free 64-gallon cart to be used for trash and a 94-gallon cart to be used for recyclable materials such as newspapers, bottles, glass, and cans. There is no need to separate recyclable material; it all goes into the 94-gallon recycling cart. If a resident wants to purchase an additional cart, the cost is $65 for a second trash cart and $75 for another recycling cart. The new five-year contract signed by the selectmen with Republic Services will save the town over $27,000 per year — and possibly more, depending on the amount of tonnage residents recycle. The contract allows for the curbside pickup of one bulk item for free each week. Additional bulk items and appliances will be picked up for free by calling 1-800-222-5158, or you can bring the item to a drop-off site at a location to be determined.
According to Terry Grady, Republic Services’ municipal services manager, the town will save on disposal fees by converting from barrels to carts. Trash volumes usually diminish while recycling volume increases with the larger recycling containers over the smaller bins. There is no cost associated with the processing of recyclables, and it is a lot easier to wheel a cart to the curb than to lug a couple of 18-gallon bins to the curb. Using carts also reduces wind-blown papers and plastic bottles as they are now all contained in the covered cart. According to Mr. Grady, “There is not a community in this country that has ever reverted back to barrels and bins once they have experienced the use of toters (carts).”
The nearby towns of Norwood, Dedham, and Westwood are also currently under contract with Republic Services.
The waste pickup will still occur weekly, and recycling will be picked up every other week. Carts must be placed on the curbside by 7 a.m. on the designated pickup day. For the first two weeks, Republic Services will pick up and dispose of the old trash barrels as well as the blue recycling bins at no cost, or residents can drop them off at a site to be determined. Electronics (computers, radios, televisions) can be dropped off at the DPW Bolivar Street garage.
State Senator Brian A. Joyce reported that the senate passed a general government bond bill that includes $1.5 million for the Canton Senior Center construction and $10 million for capital improvements to the Massachusetts Hospital School in Canton, which provides medical, habilitative, rehabilitative, recreational, educational, and vocational services to children and young adults with multiple disabilities. The conference committee and governor must pass and sign the bill before funds will come to the town.
The Canton Zoning Board of Appeals recently approved a 160-unit assisted living facility to be built on the 32-acre AA Will Sand & Gravel site off Route 138 on Turnpike Street. The project, proposed by Baltimore-based Brightview Senior Living, will consist of a single, three-story (36-foot high) structure. The facility will contain a mix of independent living, assisted living, and an Alzheimer’s care unit. Construction will begin in late summer or early fall, according to Richard Staiti, attorney for Brightview.
The Canton High School Class of 1969 will hold its 45th reunion on Saturday, August 2, from 2-6 p.m. at the American Legion Hall in Canton. A casual catered cookout is planned. For more information, send an email to chsclass1969@aim.com.
Margarita Delaporta, a Canton resident and a recent graduate of Blue Hills Regional High School, was named to the 2014 Patriot Ledger All-Scholastic Girls Basketball Team. The 5’6” senior point guard finished her career with 1,166 points and was named the Mayflower League MVP this season.
Towns in the south shore have been turning old trash into cash as they convert their capped landfills into sites for solar arrays, leasing the property to private companies, which install and operate a ground-mounted solar photovoltaic facility. Among the south shore towns that have installed solar arrays atop their landfills are Canton, Rockland, Marshfield, Scituate, Duxbury, and Pembroke.
The Canton Council on Aging will sponsor a trip on the Odyssey, Boston’s most luxurious cruise ship, on Tuesday, August 26. The trip will include a two-hour tour of Boston Harbor with a live jazz band and an entertaining musical show. After the ship docks, you will be able to browse for an hour at Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market. You get all this for only $74. The bus leaves St. Gerard’s parking lot at 9:30 a.m. For more information, call the senior center at 781-828-1323 or council chairwoman Janet Walrod at 781-575-1491.
Henry Ford once said, “You will find men who want to be carried on the shoulders of others, who think that the world owes them a living. They don’t seem to see that we must all lift together and pull together.”
This is all for now folks. See you next week.
Joe DeFelice can be reached at manaboutcanton@aol.com.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=26026
Posted by Joe DeFelice
on Jul 12 2014. Filed under Featured Content, Man About Canton, Opinion.
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