NEW: Newport Man Calls Out Excessive Trash in City—And Officials Take Notice
Monday, July 27, 2020
One Newport resident is fed up with piles of trash littering the city — a tourism destination that caters to hundreds of thousands of visitors annually.
Joseph Fitzpatrick, who is a local realtor, finally had enough with excessive trash in the city not being picked up.
He posted a photo to social media asking businesses to kick in money to address the issue.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTFitzpatrick posted the photo Sunday morning, asking businesses to match his $1000 pledge, hoping to get to $5,000, to fund a response to the issue.
He told GoLocal that after an hour of going public, he had $10,000 in pledges. As of 3 PM, he had $13,000.
"We've got to do something," said Fitzpatrick. "This isn't a knock against the city or city officials. But they always look at this as a big problem, with million-dollar waste management contracts. Hire twenty people at twenty dollars an hour and get this taken care of."
Initially, the Mayor of Newport said she was unaware of the problem. "I can't comment. When and where was this picture taken?" said Mayor Jamie Bova Sunday morning.
Fitzpatrick's Appeal
"Yes, this is a rant. However, it is concise and I offer a solution so please bear with me. My Sunday morning run took me past city bins this morning from Harrison to America’s Cup to Bellevue Ave and this (Hammetts Wharf was a very close second) one at the top of Ann Street pier was the worst but basically typical of what I saw,” Fitzpatrick posted.
Fitzpatrick in his post said he was seeking a meeting with city officials.
“Today I am looking for four other business owners or concerned local citizens that are inclined and have the means to fund this budget with me. No go fund me, no PayPal, no Venmo, no fundraiser - just five checks for $1,000 each. I want this plan to be in place by next weekend. If the city can’t or won’t help I’ll have my guys do it and spend the $5,000 myself on labor and dump fees but either way this needs a problem of the past,” Fitzpatrick added.
Elected Officials Respond
Lynn Ceglie, the Second Ward Councilor for the city, said that Newport needs to "work together" to address the issue of trash
"Solar-powered bins are designed with WiFi signals that alert Waste Management to indicate a need for pickup. At times, something gets stuck in the middle of the bin such as a pizza box which throws off the need for pickup. The city has also put our additional bins in various high traffic areas," she said. "Whenever a complaint is made to the city about a malfunctioning bin, the public services department is very responsive and cleans it up. And yes, some businesses do sponsor additional bins which the city appreciates very much."
"We all need to work together. I had someone contact me a few weeks ago. I contacted the city manager and within minutes the situation was resolved," said Ceglie. "While the situation at the moment is unsightly, the public works department is on the job."
Councilwoman Kate Leonard -- another top realtor -- had another take. "People are driving up to trash bins and throwing big trash bags in the bins...horrible," said Leonard. "Bins were emptied. They are probably filled again — a lot of take-out food and people coming with coolers and lunches -- not big spenders."
Council members responded following Fitzpatrick's post that the issue had been addressed.
Councilors Justin McLaughlin and Angela McCalla said that later Sunday morning, the trash had been emptied. They did not comment on the photo from earlier in the day.
Now, according to Fitzpatrick, he has a meeting with the mayor on Monday morning.
This story was first published 7/26/20 5:18 PM
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