How I disposed of construction debris at the SO DPW yard

theotherguy said:

this was a fantastic read. have you ever thought about being an author. i really loved the way there was a point to your story.

theotherguy said:

lol im not necessarily trying to get banned and i certainly dont have the patience to start a new account but i just dont see the point of the original message. what was dickf3 trying to convey to the world? sometimes theres a container day? DPW can be helpful? throwing chunks of concrete can be difficult?

Yesterday, I ran into an former neighbor who was back in
town to glimpse a religious figure. We talked about the current State of the Village.
He alerted me that some consternation had been expressed over my failure
to provide adequate historical perspective in my opening post.

Upon review, I see the agita was well warranted. Sorry guys! Hopefully this will remedy the situation:

I was heading down to the soccer field that Saturday (Aug.2014) for some light plyometrics. En route, I had stopped at the Farrell Field courts. An old, medium sized pickup truck loaded with weathered wooden planks slowly passed by. The tailgate was down; the stacked wood filled the entire bed up to virtually the top of the side rails. I could see it carefully turn to go down the DPW road, and remember thinking “those guys are in for a big surprise”. It was Container Day.

A bit later, I was at the bottom of the road, about to take the path into the soccer field. The same truck was now coming out of the DPW gate – empty. Surprised, I detoured into the yard.I asked the DPW guy (a younger guy I hadn’t seen before)directing traffic “Can I dispose of construction debris here today?”. I fully expected him to tell me “no”. He told me “yes”. I asked him “when did it change?” He told me “it’s been that way for a long time”. I asked him “Even cinderblocks?” He said yes.

I was quite surprised, even though I knew of the DPW office's problem with timely/accurate communications. I not seen any announcement of the change in the Gaslight or at the SO website. Earlier that summer, a MOL regular (possibly michaelgoldberg) had asked, on these pages, how to dispose of construction debris in SO. Several knowledgeable/prolific MOL Villagers responded; none mentioned SO Container Day as an option. I recollect one even citing the relevant reg. prohibiting construction debris at this event.

After confirming closing hour with the DPW man, I nixed my plyometric plans, and ran home. Got out a pickaxe to dig up what I thought was a cinder block buried at the edge of the vegetable garden. It was just solid chunks of concrete. Drove them down, and put them in the garbage truck, as directed by the DPW man at the dumpster.

I, ummmm.

Yeah. Okay.

Did theotherguy get banned? What's the story? Is he strawberry in disguise or something?

Anyway, I immediately understood the point of the OP's message, which is that in spite of rules forbidding the disposal of construction debris during container days, DPW is willing to make exceptions for small amounts of debris (you can't put THAT much concrete in the trunk of a car) and the employees he encountered were pleasant and helpful. I've had the exact same experience. Thanks, DPW!

Tonight my truck looks like a 2015 version of Jed Clampett moving to Beverly Hills, but only if it was all the stuff Jed and the kinfolk didn't really want to keep. Heading on down to the container day tomorrow morning.

TL; DR

dickf3 said:
Yesterday, I ran into an former neighbor who was back in
town to glimpse a religious figure. We talked about the current State of the Village.
He alerted me that some consternation had been expressed over my failure
to provide adequate historical perspective in my opening post.
Upon review, I see the agita was well warranted. Sorry guys! Hopefully this will remedy the situation:

I was heading down to the soccer field that Saturday (Aug.2014) for some light plyometrics. En route, I had stopped at the Farrell Field courts. An old, medium sized pickup truck loaded with weathered wooden planks slowly passed by. The tailgate was down; the stacked wood filled the entire bed up to virtually the top of the side rails. I could see it carefully turn to go down the DPW road, and remember thinking “those guys are in for a big surprise”. It was Container Day.

A bit later, I was at the bottom of the road, about to take the path into the soccer field. The same truck was now coming out of the DPW gate – empty. Surprised, I detoured into the yard.I asked the DPW guy (a younger guy I hadn’t seen before)directing traffic “Can I dispose of construction debris here today?”. I fully expected him to tell me “no”. He told me “yes”. I asked him “when did it change?” He told me “it’s been that way for a long time”. I asked him “Even cinderblocks?” He said yes.


I was quite surprised, even though I knew of the DPW office's problem with timely/accurate communications. I not seen any announcement of the change in the Gaslight or at the SO website. Earlier that summer, a MOL regular (possibly michaelgoldberg) had asked, on these pages, how to dispose of construction debris in SO. Several knowledgeable/prolific MOL Villagers responded; none mentioned SO Container Day as an option. I recollect one even citing the relevant reg. prohibiting construction debris at this event.

After confirming closing hour with the DPW man, I nixed my plyometric plans, and ran home. Got out a pickaxe to dig up what I thought was a cinder block buried at the edge of the vegetable garden. It was just solid chunks of concrete. Drove them down, and put them in the garbage truck, as directed by the DPW man at the dumpster.

kthnry said:
Did theotherguy get banned? What's the story? Is he strawberry in disguise or something?
!

His account appears to have been deleted

Rob_Sandow said:
Tonight my truck looks like a 2015 version of Jed Clampett moving to Beverly Hills, but only if it was all the stuff Jed and the kinfolk didn't really want to keep. Heading on down to the container day tomorrow morning.

It's great that some people a.) have a truck or large vehicle of some type, b.) have the physical strength and/ or assistance to load the truck, and c.) time to wait on a long line to get rid of debris, bulk, etc. Wake up, folks. This doesn't happen other places and it's absolutely not convenient for everyone, especially many of our senior citizens.

annielou said:

Rob_Sandow said:
Tonight my truck looks like a 2015 version of Jed Clampett moving to Beverly Hills, but only if it was all the stuff Jed and the kinfolk didn't really want to keep. Heading on down to the container day tomorrow morning.

It's great that some people a.) have a truck or large vehicle of some type, b.) have the physical strength and/ or assistance to load the truck, and c.) time to wait on a long line to get rid of debris, bulk, etc. Wake up, folks. This doesn't happen other places and it's absolutely not convenient for everyone, especially many of our senior citizens.

I was thinking the other day that South Orange really needs to bring back bulk pickup day yearly, twice a year,or even better, monthly like Maplewood. We need that convenience. Trying to make it to bulk drop-off without a truck is ludicrous. We end up being hoarders of broken objects and unwanted goods because we can't get to the drop-off day.

Mary, you can let me know anytime. I'm in line in the truck right now.

marylago said:

annielou said:

Rob_Sandow said:
Tonight my truck looks like a 2015 version of Jed Clampett moving to Beverly Hills, but only if it was all the stuff Jed and the kinfolk didn't really want to keep. Heading on down to the container day tomorrow morning.

It's great that some people a.) have a truck or large vehicle of some type, b.) have the physical strength and/ or assistance to load the truck, and c.) time to wait on a long line to get rid of debris, bulk, etc. Wake up, folks. This doesn't happen other places and it's absolutely not convenient for everyone, especially many of our senior citizens.

I was thinking the other day that South Orange really needs to bring back bulk pickup day yearly, twice a year,or even better, monthly like Maplewood. We need that convenience. Trying to make it to bulk drop-off without a truck is ludicrous. We end up being hoarders of broken objects and unwanted goods because we can't get to the drop-off day.

FilmCarp said:
Mary, you can let me know anytime. I'm in line in the truck right now.

marylago said:

annielou said:

Rob_Sandow said:
Tonight my truck looks like a 2015 version of Jed Clampett moving to Beverly Hills, but only if it was all the stuff Jed and the kinfolk didn't really want to keep. Heading on down to the container day tomorrow morning.

It's great that some people a.) have a truck or large vehicle of some type, b.) have the physical strength and/ or assistance to load the truck, and c.) time to wait on a long line to get rid of debris, bulk, etc. Wake up, folks. This doesn't happen other places and it's absolutely not convenient for everyone, especially many of our senior citizens.

I was thinking the other day that South Orange really needs to bring back bulk pickup day yearly, twice a year,or even better, monthly like Maplewood. We need that convenience. Trying to make it to bulk drop-off without a truck is ludicrous. We end up being hoarders of broken objects and unwanted goods because we can't get to the drop-off day.

Thanks. That would be great.Have to wait til Spring, I guess.

You know where to find me.

FilmCarp said:
You know where to find me.

Still in line?

Hah! Nope, it was very smooth, as usual.