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4 Comments

  1. John Huttln

     /  March 7, 2010

    As anyone who freqnents Washington Square Park in the mornings knows, the park is literally strewn with garbage. There are not nearly enough trash cans and trash is not picked up at the end of the day, only the following morning.

    This morning (3/7), the park was covered in garbage as trash cans overflowed and visitors attracted by the beautiful weather yesterday had nowhere to dump their trash.

    Yet with the garbage all over, I passed Officer Dorosant of the Parks and Recreation Dept patrolling the park like his private cell block as he does each morning when I walk my dog. He was giving a ticket to a young woman whose puppy had pooped for a second time but who had unfortunately only brought one bag to clean up after her dog. The ticket was for $250.

    Dog owners need to be responsible but accidents happen. In the context of how filthy the park was this morning, there was absolutely no reason for the young woman to be ticketed. But if you’ve ever tried to speak with Officer Dorosant in a rational way, you know that’s impossible. When I asked him why he didn’t ticket people who leave trash in the park, he told me to go a fly a kite, but not in such nice language.

    At the very least, the city needs to put more trash cans in the park and add a second trash pickup late in the day. After all the money that will be spent to renovate the park, the fact that is quite often covered in trash is just pathetic.

  2. Colin Washington

     /  February 8, 2012

    As an old Londoner, England, though no longer residing there, I can testify that it makes not the slightest difference how many garbage cans there would be in any park, village or city. It would be that the park, village and city would be the garbage can its self. I see all too often, people mostly young, will dispose of their garbage where ever they may be, can or no can it is thrown down and around. Manners and cleanliness is taught at home but I must say most litter louts are of foreign descent, though not all, they are of the greater percentage. Returning to my birth city it is unbelievable how it ever got into such a dirty filthy state. Obviously this is a wide world serious problem that needs to be addressed.

  3. Monica McLaughlin

     /  June 14, 2012

    It does matter how many garbage cans there are. If there are too few, those who will litter if inconvenienced, will do so. If the existing cans are filled to overflowing, we will all be forced to litter if only to place our garbage on the ground next to an overflowing garbage can.

    The lady with the dog, who failed to bring a second bag (dumb) should have stood next to the poop and asked passers by for a bag, tissue or piece of paper. As a dog owner, I must say that we all have been there. You simply cannot leave dog poop on the ground, because you failed to bring a bag. That would mean that only people who carried bags would be liable for leaving dog poop.

  4. cathryn

     /  June 19, 2012

    This does seem to be an issue at many of the city’s parks – they can’t keep up with the garbage intake (it’s true if there were more cans they *would* be filled), Prospect Park is a prime example. WSP does get pretty filled up as well. In some places it would seem crazy to have two trash cans – or not as aesthetically appealing – but overflowing trash cans with garbage on the ground isn’t so great either. I’d say this often points back to budgetary issues, whether it’s something as simple as getting the extra trash can or having the staff to maintain them.

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