Garbage-strewn areas 'lowest priority' as council pushes back motion, Regina resident says
City resumes weekly trash pickup for spring, summer months on April 4
A discussion about gross amounts of loose garbage and illegally dumped items in Regina neighbourhoods has been delayed until next month.
City council was expected to hear from residents and discuss a motion Wednesday regarding solutions to piled-up debris in affected areas such as Heritage and North Central.
"We know that the incidents of complaints have gone up significantly over the last couple of years, almost 180 per cent," Mayor Sandra Masters told The Morning Edition's Stefani Langenegger on Thursday.
"We're looking to other jurisdictions as well for best practices. But it's an ongoing problem that we're hoping that enforcement increases compliance."
A city report from Nov. 17, 2021, made several recommendations to council, including the proactive tagging of garbage carts left out in alleys or otherwise in violation of the waste management bylaw.
"The idea is that if bins are either brought into garages or within property lines themselves, that they're less accessible for dumping illegally or for tipping," Masters said.
Listen: Morning Edition's Stefani Langenegger speaks with Mayor Sandra Masters about Regina's growing trash issue after council pushed back a discussion on the topic Wednesday.
With the tagging system, homeowners could potentially face fines if they ignore bylaw warnings and continue to violate rules.
As for the illegal dumping of items such as couches and mattresses, the mayor says enforcement is more challenging because it's not always clear who discarded the waste.
"One of the solutions was to provide bigger bins for large items in in neighbourhoods," said Masters, who added she also likes the idea of a city-wide "free dump day" where the city could pick up large items.
The mayor said the clean communities motion had to be tabled to the next public meeting scheduled for April 20 due to other topics running long.
'Every day we see this trash'
Orion Paradis, a homeowner, business owner and landlord in the Heritage area, says he filed his first compliant about garbage-strewn alleys seven years ago, and has filed hundreds more since.
Paradis told CBC News Thursday he waited three hours, 45 minutes of which was in a virtual queue, to speak as a pre-approved delegate during Wednesday's council meeting.
"The fact is that there was an opportunity here to address something topical in a timely matter, and the city chose not to," he said.
"And by choosing not to, they made me — as a Heritage resident — feel that they don't have a priority on the issue, which is really just disheartening because this is our daily reality. Every day we see this trash."
"It seems unusual, but all I can say in the end is that we were the lowest priority," he said.
"If the mayor was really concerned, she could come walk down some alleys with me. She could at least be seen to care what was there. The message I got is that we're going to table this until some other point because it doesn't really matter."
Paradis took unpaid time off work to speak during his allotted five minutes at Wednesday's council meeting.
He adds that with public meetings starting at 1 p.m., being an active and engaged citizen isn't as easy for those who work weekdays. Additionally, Paradis says, he won't be able to attend the April 20 meeting.
Weekly garbage collection to resume
The City of Regina is resuming its weekly residential garbage pickup for the spring and summer months starting Monday, April 4. People are asked to:
- Bag or bundle all waste items, keep cart lids closed and not leave loose items on the ground.
- Bring carts out to the curb or alley by 7:30 a.m. on collection day, and no earlier than 6 p.m. the evening before scheduled pickup.
- Leave one metre around the cart so collection trucks can access it properly.
- Roll the cart it back to a secure location on their property by midnight of collection day.
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With files from The Morning Edition