Millbrook, Tree City or trash city?

MILLBROOK — During the Feb. 27 meeting of the Village Board, Buffy Arborgast, owner of Babette’s Kitchen in Millbrook, brought up the problem of village trash. It’s not the first time it was mentioned, and it won’t be the last. 

Arborgast came armed with photos. The mayor, Rodney Brown, agreed that the problem is severe and must be dealt with. Millbrook, long known as a Tree City, USA, might in the future be known as trash city if something isn’t done.

Arborgast remarked that this is an ongoing problem and has been for some time. 

“It’s not the first time I’ve come before the board to ask that something be done,” she said.

There are currently seven rubbish bins on Franklin Avenue, consisting of a bin set within a decorative metal holder. Welsh/Royal Carting collects Millbrook’s trash. While the inside of a village trash bin can be easily emptied, the outside of the bin is too heavy for one man to lift. So while the main portion of trash gets dumped, stray trash falls to the bottom and stays there even when the inside bin is empty. It attracts rodents and other vermin and it smells bad, especially during the summer months.

Adding to the problem is the fact that most landlords don’t provide garbage receptacles for  their tenants, or a means to discard their trash. Many tenants, then, use the bins on Franklin Avenue, which were never designed to hold household trash.

It’s also been reported that some people from outside of the village of Millbrook bring their trash to dump in Millbrook’s municipal bins.

The limited number of bins is also very apparent after public events, such as the Christmas parade and Community Day, when hundreds of visitors have to discard food items and drinks into garbage cans. The trash doesn’t leave with people when they go home. Instead, it is dumped in the village bins, and often overflows. It’s unsightly and smelly — all negatives for a quaint and tidy village like Millbrook. It doesn’t make the residents happy, either.

Since the Feb. 27 meeting, the mayor has made several suggestions. He and the Village Board are working with Arborgast. Trustee Mike Herzog has met  with the businesswoman to develop a new plan for Millbrook’s trash. New solar receptacles would be ideal, they agreed, but are extremely expensive.

Brown suggested that inexpensive bins be used as a replacement for the current bins until a final solution to the problem is found.

As of today, Arborgast and Herzog have had a number of meetings and are looking at trash systems that might be suitable for the village. Brown has also suggested that Welsh be contacted and asked to make an extra trash pickup after community events.

Codes may have to be changed, added the mayor, and possibly landlords will have to take more responsibility of how their tenants throw away their trash.

Any new receptacles will need to meet specifications. Arborgast and Herzog have both noted that the openings in the current trash cans are too wide, allowing for large trash items to be tossed in. Ideally, a smaller opening would allow little more than a napkin or a paper cup to be thrown away.