The Clean Chelsea Initiative: 2004
I.
Trash Disposal Alternatives Committee:
The Trash Disposal Alternatives Committee, composed of City Councillors, City staff,
and local residents, will be convened to understand, discuss, compare, and if merited,
recommend a better way to manage the residential trash disposal process. Current
guidelines are often lacking in uniformity and/or enforcement, resulting in waste being
placed out for collection in a manner that contributes to litter and blight in local
neighborhoods. Additionally, there exists a lack of incentive to recycle and reduce the
amount of solid waste in the community. One alternative the committee will review is
already a popular trend in Massachusetts; the potential use of a “Pay-as-You-Throw”
unit-based pricing system. Under that PAYT, only special bags purchased through the
municipality or its vendors would be picked up on trash day. Another alternative is to
require all trash to be placed out in barrels. Representatives from the Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection will be called in and public outreach will be
performed to help the committee generate informed and educated decisions regarding the
range of alternatives. In the final stages of the committee, a report will be produced and
brought to the full City Council for review before any new policies are adopted.
II.
Zero Tolerance on Graffiti:
The City of Chelsea has maintained a Zero Tolerance on Graffiti on all municipal
buildings and public properties. Last summer, the City, through Keep Chelsea Beautiful,
introduced a Zero Tolerance Pledge asking businesses to commit to Chelsea’s fight
against graffiti. We were more than pleased at the response from the business
community, accepting 50 pledges to remove graffiti from buildings and to increase
vigilance on properties that have been victimized. This summer the program will be
reintroduced and extended. Businesses should have already or will soon receive a pledge
form. With continuing community support, the Zero Tolerance on Graffiti policy will
eradicate blight and instill additional pride within the community.
III.
Business District Litter Initiative:
Beautification of core commercial areas and those less traveled begin with controlling
litter. Through the Business District Litter Initiative, the City will add more trash
receptacles, especially in the downtown, for proper litter disposal, and seek the
participation of store operators and property owners in cleaning and maintaining their
properties. Through the trash receptacles in the downtown, the City will purchase and
install attractive, yet durable trash receptacles in the downtown, providing more
opportunities for patrons to properly dispose of trash. If the initiative is successful,
additional receptacles will be placed in smaller business districts. Regarding encouraging
responsible parties to clean in front of their properties, the City, through Keep Chelsea
Beautiful will contact all parties in targeted areas, and especially target major generators
of litter to pledge to keep their properties clean. Both actions will be part of discussions
the City has in establishing Business District Improvement Plans throughout the
community. The initiatives should reduce litter, reduce the time litter remains on streets
and sidewalks, and improve the image of each business district, thereby promoting
further patronage and investment.
IV.
Zooming in on Illegal Dumping:
Like many, if not all communities, illegal dumping is a source of blight and frustration
locally. Taking advantage of a benefit of the 14-point plan for increased public safety
recently offered by the City, Police, and Inspectional Services Department, officials will
identify designated hotspots for illegal dumping and utilize mobile surveillance
equipment to catch the dumping scofflaws. Special laws and regulations regarding the
use of these recordings in the conviction of major offenders are being refined and
strengthened.
V.
Recycling Enhancement Plan:
Chelsea recycling rate is a woeful 5%. Should action be taken on “Pay-as-You-Throw”
or a like system, a positive by-product is likely to be an increased participation in
recycling. To promote better education, the City will seek to engage interested
community advocates in raising the level of awareness to recycling. As part of that
effort, the City will unveil a recycling participation lottery that will serve to reward those
who currently recycle and motivate others to want to recycle in the future.
VI.
Community Cleanup Days:
The City currently participates in the Great American Cleanup held every spring in
conjunction with the national effort led by Keep America Beautiful. This past May, 250
volunteers logged approximately 1,000 volunteer hours and collected an estimated 9,000
pounds of litter and debris at 10 sites around the city. So successful has been the annual
effort that the City, though Keep Chelsea Beautiful, will conduct an annual Fall
Community Cleanup in conjunction with the national “Civic Participation Week.” The
inaugural fall cleanup will take place on Saturday, September 18th. In addition to picking
up litter and debris on vacant lots and along the sides of highways and rail lines, the
cleanup effort will focus on abating graffiti and beautifying sites with plantings.
VII.
Chelsea Beautification Awards:
The City seeks to encourage more stakeholders of the community to take on more
responsibility for the beautification of Chelsea. Many, however, are already doing their
part. In order to recognize those who are motivated as well as those who motivate others
to take part in the beautification of Chelsea, the City, through Keep Chelsea Beautiful,
will sponsor Chelsea Beautification Awards. CBA’s will be given to residents or others
who display admirable effort, success in, and commitment to maintaining properties,
recycling waste, and volunteering their time to beautify Chelsea.
VIII. Statewide Policy Advocacy:
In addition to advocating for programs and regulations to attack litter and blight on the
local level, the City will commit to advocating for statewide initiatives and laws that
address litter and blight throughout the commonwealth. The first such effort comes as a
result of examining the litter on local streets and those in other communities. The City
will advocate for a scratch-ticket return policy and an extension of the bottle bill to water,
juice and other bottled drinks. The City believes the success of the present bottle bill on
eliminating soda and liquor cans and bottles from street litter can provide similar success
in two of the biggest contributors to street litter confronting every city and town in the
commonwealth. The City Council recently adopted a resolution asking the Treasurer of
the Commonwealth to devise a return policy on scratch-tickets. Legislation currently
exists at the State House to extend the bottle bill to other bottle drinks.