SAN DIEGO — CBS 8 viewers in the City of San Diego continue to share their frustrations and their pictures of their trash cans destroyed by city garbage trucks.
“Every time they touch this garbage can, they do something,” said Sandra Castillo, who lives in Clairemont. The lid on her black bin went missing on trash day.
“I’m looking all over for this top, a day-and-a-half I’m looking for this top,” said Castillo.
The next day when she and her husband were still searching for the missing lid, they found it in a peculiar place.
“He’s like, ‘Look up.’ I’ll be darned if the top wasn’t all the way up on that pole,” said Castillo, who then called the City of San Diego’s Environmental Services.
“I said, ‘You left my top up on a pole. Can you come get it down?’ And he said, ‘No, you need to get it down yourself.’ I said, ‘I’m in my sixties, I’m not going to climb a telephone pole,’” said Castillo.
Fortunately, she flagged down a passing SDG&E truck, and got her lid down from the utility pole. She attached it back on the trash can with zip ties, but it fell right into the truck on the next trash day, so she asked the City for a replacement lid, but was told her garbage can was too old and that she’d have to pay for an entirely new one along with a delivery charge.
“I’m not doing anything, I’m not paying this money,” said Castillo adamantly. “I pay too many taxes already.”
CBS 8 showed you Lee Ann Ramsey’s cracked bin on Monday in Clairemont. When garbage collection day hit Wednesday, it made matters even worse.
“Look at that,” said Ramsey. “That’s how messed up it is. It’s coming completely apart.”
Her can is less than two years old. According to the City of San Diego’s 10-year prorated warranty system, a replacement would cost $14 rather than the full price of $70, but unless she picks it up from their office in Miramar, she’d have to pay a $25 delivery fee.
“Things are going to leak out of it. Any liquids are going to leak out of it all over my driveway,” said Ramsey.
In Kensington, Kyle Brandon figured out a way to keep his garbage can lid from coming off.
“I just took a torch to it and a screwdriver, and just mashed the plastic around,” said Brandon while pointing to the plastic nut that holds the lid to the can.
His bins are more than 25 years old and still holding up fine. In fact, when he went in to replace them 10 years ago, he said the workers advised him to keep the older ones he already had since they were made with more durable plastic.
“I went in and they put new wheels on it and said, ‘Take it home,’” said Brandon. “Because the other ones break, it’s a different kind of plastic.”
Meanwhile, back in Clairemont, Castillo’s can now sits in the alley without a lid, and she refuses to buy a new one.
“They’re garbage cans. Come on, City, get with it. Look at our roads,” said Castillo while standing next to multiple potholes in the alleyway next to her bins. “Do we have to have our garbage cans stinking too?”
CBS 8 reached out to the City of San Diego’s Environmental Services, and they sent the following statement:
“Parts are not available for purchase for bins over 10 years old, as some parts may no longer even fit. For bins that are under warranty (less than 10 years old), parts are available for free at the Collections Division off Miramar Road for pickup. Or the customer can schedule delivery of replacement parts (also free when the container is under warranty).
Customers in need of a new container because their lid is broken or missing on a container that is older than 10 years can call the City’s Environmental Services Department at 858-694-7000.”
The City of San Diego’s trash bins are manufactured by Rehrig Pacific Company, a waste and recycling supply company based in Los Angeles County.
At CBS 8, we are always Working for You and our community. This is a station promise that we will go the extra mile to solve a problem our audience can’t solve themselves. We want to hear your ideas on how we can cover and help our community. If you have a story idea, please email us at workingforyou@cbs8.com.
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