NEW Recycling Program coming soon

The City has already switched to Single Stream (un-sorted recyclables) recycling City-wide.  However, the plan approved in the Fall by the BOA to partner with Recycle Bank is NOT going to happen as planned (financial difficulties for Recycle Bank).  The City's "plan B" is in the works and was outlined before the BOA's City Services & Environmental Policy Committee last night (I'm Vice-Chair of the CSEP Committee).

The City has already moved to Single Stream recycling.  It is not necessary to separate the accepted recyclables, and you will see DPW mixing all recyclables put out in the small, blue bins as they're put in the trucks.

This flyer will be updated soon, but it does list the acceptable recyclables.

And please, NO recyclables in plastic bags!

Stay tuned for more details in this post...  for now, click here for an NHI story

Pothole Season

Last week I drove Howard Weissberg around the neighborhood.  Howard is the Deputy Director of Public Works.  We talked about the condition of our neighborhood streets.  As we emerge from winter and enter "pothole season," Howard made notes of many potholes in need of attention.  DPW has indeed responded to our concerns and the concerns throughout the city for pothole repair.  Currently DPW is limited to "cold" & "warm" patch material which is temporary.  "Hot mix" becomes available after April 1st, and they'll work on patching for the next several weeks.  Then, DPW and Engineering will prioritize and schedule street repair work in our neighborhood and throughout the city.

If you have street issues to report...

The City continues to increase their partnership with SeeClickFix.com (read my previous Blog).  This online service provides yet another tool to help communicate your concerns to elected officials, City Departments, and with neighbors.  I've set up a Watch Area - Ward 25-Alderman Dildine Watch Area - for our neighborhood.  Click "Issues Map" to see current issues in our neighborhood.  ANY issue added within this area will generate an email notification which I'll receive immediately.

see click fix

The City continues to increase their partnership with SeeClickFix.  This online service provides yet another tool to help communicate your concerns to elected officials, City Departments, and with neighbors.  I've set up a Watch Area - Ward 25-Alderman Dildine Watch Area - for our neighborhood.  Click "Issues Map" to see current issues in our neighborhood.  All issues (not just based on Keywords) added within this area will generate an email notification which I'll receive immediately.

Also, at least 53 other "Watchers" including several City Departments will get notifications based on Keywords in the issue's subject and text.  While not all the City Departments are monitoring SeeClickFix, the NHPD, Transportation, Traffic & Parking (TT&P) and most recently the Department of Public Works (DPW) are now using this tool fairly effectively.  TT&P will even acknowledge receipt.  Several City Departments may look to be monitoring, but may not be as responsive or integrated to this alert system.  I believe the City is working to improve the utilization of this tool, and I will forward requests to the proper department if I don't think certain departments are totally on board yet.

So, I encourage you to check this out and give it a try.  Please sign up to "follow" my Watch Area; then you'll be assured that I have been notified of your issue; or, you can create your own area.

TT&P is monitoring these Keyword ("minus" indicates they're ignoring those words because they're are usually for other folks):  "graffiti on sign" traffic ped crosswalk intersection "traffic signal" "stop light" bike sign -mugging -blight -pothole "-storm drain" -drain -trash -speeding -drug -stealing -manhole "-manhole cover" -graffiti -bricks -atv 
DPW is monitoring: pothole "pot hole" uneven broken damaged sweep glass debris -atv -illegal -drug

Email

Please send me your email address if you would like to get Neighborhood News, Info & Updates.

dildine2009@comcast.net

Thanks!

Happy Holidays & Happy New Year (and tree collection)

Hope everyone is enjoying the Holidays!
And, Happy New Year to all!!

Christmas Tree pick-up begins Monday, Jan. 4th:

The Department of Public Works will begin holiday tree collection on Monday, January 4th and will continue this effort through the end of January. Residents are asked to please place their trees outside with their trash on their regularly scheduled collection day.
All decorations must be removed from the tree. If a tree becomes frozen to the ground, it will become the responsibility of the homeowner to remove the tree. For more information, please call the Department of Public Works Citizen Response Unit at 203-946-7700.

for the new Alders...

Thought I'd let everyone know that the City is introducing us new Alders to City Department heads, and Alderwoman Ina Silverman is hosting "boot camp" to get us up to speed on BOA procedures.

Dec. 1st, I attended a meeting to meet folks and hear from several City Departments. NHPD Chief Lewis was there with Asst. Chief Brown. Chief Lewis presented the recently released crime data report (NHI story here) showing improvement from 2008. Mike Piscitelli, Director of Transportation, Traffic & Parking and John Prokop, Director of Public Works, both summarized their roles. Pat Wallace, the new Director for Elderly Services gave an update on what she's hearing from the 55+ community. Che Dawson introduced us to the City's Youth Department. Rafael Ramos, Dep. Dir. Housing Code Enforcement, explained his duties and the services that the Livable City Initiative Bureau (LCI) provides, including the second phase of the relatively new Rental Property Licensing & Inspection Program. NHFD Chief Grant gave an overview of the FD's organization and expressed his excitement on moving forward with much needed Lieutenant & Captain promotions.

Last night, Alderwoman Ina Silverman, BOA President Carl Goldfield, and Al Lucas, Dir. of Legislative Services, taught part-one of "New Alderman 'Boot camp'." We were all provided with lots of helpful information, as we all get set to help our neighborhoods and our City as soon as we're all sworn in to office at noon, January 1st at a ceremony at Coop High School.

DPW Leaf removal info

Street Sweeping becomes Leaf removal in November. Deputy Director of Public Works, Howard Weissberg, who spoke & answered questions at Nov's CMT meeting, reports that DPW has finished removing leaves from Ward 25/Route 11's streets. They will probably be back for more in December, as leaves fell late this year impacting the schedule and removal efficiency and completeness. Starting in November, DPW assesses the need for leaf pick-up, route-by-route, and formulates the schedule based on need and efficiency and not on a set schedule. This year, DPW also even added a "scraping" crew with a front-end-loader to go out ahead of the sweepers to remove big batches of leaves. Leaf crews AND garbage crews take away "resident bagged Leaves" during leaf season. It is illegal for anyone to rake or blow leaves into the street. DPW will warn and ticket violators. Howard does admit that communication could improve so they can get more cooperation from residents regarding moving cars and bagging leaves. Howard says he will continue to work to improve this program.

There is also a "night crew" to spot sweep and address arterial roads. CT DOT does not help with "their" many roads like Whalley & Fountain.

Please contact Ina or me to pass on any concerns about City Sweeping & Leaf removal to Howard. The concerns I've been hearing suggest many folks would like to see: ALL cars removed prior to sweeping and especially prior to leave collection (improve efficiency), more communication of schedule (via web or robo-phone calls), more information about "the rules" (website, flyers), and more enforcement of the bagging & not-into-the-street rules. Some folks would also like more supervision & evaluation of City crews/employees to ensure proper procedures (no leaf bags in with regular garbage) and increased efficiency.

Street Sweeping - some more info

There is info on DPW's website about street sweeping -- however it's from the Spring. It (click on the map) does however show Ward 25's Street Sweeping Route as #11. Route #11 is swept monthly between April - November on the first Monday (side 1) & first Tuesday (Side 2) of those months. According to Deputy Director of Public Works, Howard Weissberg, who spoke & answered questions at Nov's CMT meeting, the City's one crew takes care of the City's 14 Routes in a 28 day cycle (2 days/2 sides of the street). This full schedule does occasionally result in routes/neighborhoods being "missed" due to holidays or bad weather. Westville/Route 11 was "missed" 2 months in a row this sweeping season due to these factors. But, unlike "posted" routes, DPW can come back to our "in & out, un-posted" route, schedule permitting.

A set schedule and "posted" (permanent signs on poles) routes, does not allow for as much scheduling flexibility as DPW would like to accommodate needs and efficiency. Also, efficiency comes from having cars off the streets to be swept. Our neighborhood (Route 11) is one of the "un-posted" routes. This is suppose to offer the advantage of not being bothered with moving our cars on set days nor being subjected to ticketing and towing. Our neighborhood was identified as generally having fewer cars on the street which can be worked around. It also allows DPW to vary from the set two days they can come sweep our streets. In fact, for both these reasons, the City has been changing "posted" routes to "un-posted." Back to efficiency issues with "un-posted..." Crew supervisors (which go out a couple days ahead) do however assess how free of cars streets seem to be. And, they can then decide to "paper-post" streets as no-parking, providing 24 hours notice. This posting method too has it's pros and cons as you can imagine. Balancing desires, needs, requirements, efficiency, and inconvenience is the challenge. Howard is indeed re-evaluating the Street Sweeping program and will be working to improve it. He does want to emphasize that the City exceeds Federal & State DEP requirements. Cleaning the streets is done for both aesthetic and environmental reasons.

There is also a "night crew" to spot sweep and address arterial roads. CT DOT does not help with "their" many roads like Whalley & Fountain.

Please contact Ina or me to pass on any concerns about City Sweeping & Leaf removal to Howard. The concerns I've been hearing suggest many folks would like to see: ALL cars removed prior to sweeping and especially prior to leave collection (improve efficiency), more communication of schedule (via web or robo-phone calls), more information about "the rules" (website, flyers), and more enforcement of the bagging & not-into-the-street rules. Some folks also would like more supervision & evaluation of City crews/employees to ensure proper procedures (no leaf bags in with regular garbage) and increased efficiency.

CMT meeting (11/11) - DPW & LCI representatives speak

I attended the November CMT meeting last night. Two City employees came on their day off (Veteran's Day) to share information and take questions. Attendees and the board were very appreciative that LCI's Elaine Braffman and Deputy Director of Pubic Works, Howard Weissberg came to speak and listen to Westville/West Hills neighbors.

Elaine Braffman reiterated that folks should call her at her work number with any issues and to please always leave a name and phone number. She will return your call AND will always keep complainants' names private. Please visit LCI's website for Elaine's phone number on their Neighborhood Services page and for more info about how LCI can be of assistance to residents.

Howard Weissberg joined DPW as Deputy Director about 6 months ago. He came with a background and expertise in Right of Way Management. He's currently working on improving New Haven's Right of Way Management Program including new perspectives, requirements & recommendations born out of the BOA's Complete Streets resolution and created steering committee... and henceforth legislation. Right of Way Management includes street and sidewalk management. Howard confirmed he's working to implement new methodologies for efficient repair techniques, better work-order & job tracking management, a fresh survey of roads and sidewalks, and many other related aspects to what is a very big job! This all must also interface and coordinate with several other City departments including Parks, Engineering, TT&P, and City Plan. He also mentioned, since sidewalks & trees very often should be assessed as one, that DPW is also partnering with urban tree experts, URI, to help with surveying and best practices. DPW is currently experimenting and finding success with new repair techniques that don't damage tree roots (which most often cause sidewalk problems), are quicker than old methods, and cost less.

Howard reminds folks that currently the best reporting method for issues is the City's Web311 interface.

Howard also chatted about DPW's street sweeping and leaf collection (DPW has finished removing leaves from Ward 25's streets. They'll probably be back for more in Dec. Howard reports that leaves fell late this year) - here's my Blog entry about Leaf collection and my Blog about Street Sweeping...

Also, here are the CMT minutes from last month (Oct.). I'll link to Nov's when they're posted.

New City Recycling/Trash Program - UPDATED 3/26/10

This will NOT be rolling out with Recycle Bank as a partner, but the City is working on "plan B."  Read more in this  updated post...

OLD Post below:

I've been hearing about this for awhile now from Ina, Rob Smuts (City's CAO), folks at DPW, and others. A citizens group is helping with PR - New Haven Master Recyclers. The BOA approved the new measures last night. Here's the NHI story. The City has contracted with Recycle Bank to provide the infrastructure.

Community Management Team (CMT)

I was able to attend most of this month's Community Management Team meeting yesterday evening. The CMT meeting for our Police District 10 is held at the Valley St. police substation monthly. Please check the CMT's website for more info. This is truly a valuable resource and I recommend you attend a meeting or at least communicate with the CMT board members.
Minutes from these meetings will soon appear on the website.

This month's agenda featured a presentation by the "master recyclers" who are city residents working to help the city with information and pr for the city's new trash and recycling program that's coming soon!

Also, the director of the City's Elderly Services department, Patricia Wallace, came to ask what do residents 55+ need from the city? She reported that she is hearing a lot of requests for help making city streets more pedestrian friendly.

Also as always, Lt. Martin (Marty) Tchakirides, Westville-West Hills District Manager, gave his crime report and hot-spots. He reminds everyone to lock cars and garages! Please don't leave anything that looks valuable even in a locked car. He wants to hear from folks. (find his and other useful email links here) Please call stuff in!! He can only respond to things that are reported either to him, 911 or non-emergency: 946-6316.