"Uncovered trashcan" fine at 3AM during high winds.

[boywonder.livejournal.com]

So how hard up is the City of Somerville for cash? So hard-up, it appears, that they issued an "uncovered trashcan" ticket at 3:00AM (yes, that's right, in the middle of the night) DURING a storm in which Somerville was experiencing high winds and rain. You all remember the one from a few nights ago.

My dad/landlord got a ticket in the mail yesterday, including a photograph of a trashcan on the ground with the lid off on the side of the house. Normally, our trashcans are locked tight with their covers, except, apparently, when high winds and rain knock them over. We are going to appeal the ticket. I just think it is outrageous that this was even issued. Trashcans were down all over the neighborhood, as well as roof shingles everywhere, and small to medium branches on the sidewalks and streets, etc.

Did anyone else get this fine or know of anyone else who had? I mean, if the trashcans weren't picked up and it was, say, 11AM, there may be some merit to the ticket. But since it was issued during the middle of the night and during an ongoing storm, it seems really bizarre.

Comments

[ron_newman]

I don't know what it was like at 3 am, but a few hours earlier Thursday night, I was struggling to walk from the Davis Square T stop to Day Street, and could make forward progress only after I folded my umbrella. There were tree branches down on Day Street next to the municipal parking lot, across from Ideal Engine and Sacco's Bowl-Haven.

(I thought trash day was Tuesday, not Thursday or Friday, in the Davis Square area?)

only applicable if it was placed at the curb for pick up:

[pierceheart.livejournal.com]

Fight it - it's NOT a violation according to the city's own guidelines as published on their webpage:

http://www.somervillema.gov/spotlight.cfm?id=7

* While stored on your property, all trash must now be held in a waterproof & airtight container with a lid.
* Trash put out for pickup must remain in a container, but does not need to be covered. We encourage residents to remove lids before bringing trash to the curb in order to prevent loss or damage.
* Trash storage containers may not exceed 50 lbs when full.
* Times you may put out your trash remain the same: trash may be placed out for pickup no earlier than 4:00 p.m. on the day before trash collection and no later than 7:00 a.m. the day of trash collection.

Hell, from the brochure (http://www.somervillema.gov/CoS_Content/documents/Trash%20Brochurefinal.pdf):

Do I need to keep the barrel covered when I
place it out for collection?
No. We encourage you to remove the
lids prior to placing your barrels out
for collection.

[boywonder.livejournal.com]

The trash wasn't out on the sidewalk. It was next to the house where I keep the trash cans in between my house and my neighbor's house. (We both keep our trash there).

They had to be looking for trash cans down between houses in order to see it, especially at night. The trash cans are always covered, and the covers are attached to our fence so they don't blow away or go missing. It's very peculiar, this middle of the night trash fine.

[sonofabish.livejournal.com]

Do NOT appeal this ticket by mail. You will fail miserably. Show up in person and talk to a live human being. At least then you'll have a fighting chance.

This ticket doesn't surprise me. The Curatone administration has been a monument to petty asshattery and bureaucratic fucktardism to the infinity + 1 degree. Since he first took office and declared a snow emergency and had hundreds of cars ticketed and towed when there wasn't even a storm, it's been one thing after another like this.

[hikermtnbiker.livejournal.com]

I think that given the weather conditions that you have a good case for appeal.

Overnight ticketing seems to be their MO. I also received a ticket at 2-3am when some tenants left a bunch of trash bags after moving. I don't know if the police do this or they have some kind of "trash patrol". I imagine that they do it in the wee hours because they can move around the city more quickly and no one will see them skulking around people's side yards with cameras. Quite creepy in a way and while I can understand the sanitation issues it does smack of revenue generation.

[bobobb.livejournal.com]

Out of curiousity, is it legal for people (even from the city) to trespass onto and photograph your property?

Story??

[7news-producer.livejournal.com]

Hi Boywonder,

I am a producer at 7 news. Just read your story and want to hear more about it! Please call our station-617-725-0775.

Thanks!

[craigindaville.livejournal.com]

I find it hard to imagine them walking in the INCREDIBLY powerful winds that night, taking pictures of violations at 3 in the morning, and feeling like decent human beings. That storm ripped literally half of the roof shingles off of my next-door neighbor's house (gutters and all!) so for them to find it a "violation" that you didn't sit outside with your garbage cans all night replacing the lids every ten seconds hits all-time lows.

I hope that news report gets aired to show how petty this city is becoming. As much as the city claims these are isolated incidents (such as the one pierceheart refers to above) that are accidents or mistakes, they seem to happen far too often.

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

Hey boywonder, what ever happened with this? Did you appeal? Any resolution?