Be a good neighbor, screen your trash containers

Since noticing that Upper Arlington Lutheran's Mill Run Campus has an Abitibi* recyclables green and yellow trash container in its front yard instead of at the back of the SW parking lot where it would be screened by trees, I've been looking at other commercial and church buildings in our area.

Our UALC campus on Lytham Road screens (or hides) its regular brown dumpster from view by location and landscaping at its service drive (you'd have to be looking for it to see it), but has the green and yellow dumpster across the street in an open parking lot, quite visible from Lytham Rd, and even Middlesex, on the east side, rather than in a corner on the west side where the vans are parked. The Christian Church on Haviland, two blocks away, has only the brown dumpster, and it sits in the parking lot not screened by anything. It's visible from the street and from every adjoining property.


St. Andrew's Catholic Church on McCoy has its regular dumpsters unscreened on two sides, but they are snuggled in close to its utilities building at the edge of the south end of the McCoy parking lot which is a similar color. They sort of blend into their environment. The green and yellow dumpster at St. Andrew's is barely visible from the street because of its location at the west side of the McCoy parking lot, but it does greet the parishioners as they come for worship. The neighbor's trees and landscaping screen it from their view.


Advent Lutheran on Kenny Road doesn't screen either its brown dumpster or the green and yellow dumpster, but puts them as far away from the church as possible on the SE side. That puts the green and yellow one, unscreened, next to their apartment complex neighbors. However, the almost spectacular, prominent position of Advent Lutheran at that intersection makes both visible at the Tremont/Kenny intersection.

Commercial and municipal neighbors take much greater care of the visual environment than churches. It's not clear to me if churches have different zoning codes because of the way they are (not) taxed, or if they don't have the same sense of propriety that businesses have. There are two shopping centers at Fishinger and Rt. 33. Some of the fast food firms are free standing, like Arby's and McDonald's and I'd give them both a A for being good, hide-the-trash neighbors.


They've built special enclosures and painted them to be unobtrusive. The owners of these small shopping centers which lease to a variety of businesses--coffee shops, pizzarias, restaurants, pet food store, dry cleaners, gift stores, etc.--have provided screens for all the dumpsters, and they are all placed in the back where the customers and the passing traffic don't see them. Then there is additional screening either by privacy fencing, a brick wall or landscaping so they aren't displayed to the residences next door. I am wondering if the green and yellow guys aren't allowed in commercial spaces. That probably has a history that goes back 30 years or so, because I've seen news stories about problems in recyclable drop off areas that weren't maintained properly.

NIMFY
* (From their web site) The Abitibi-Consolidated Paper Retriever® Program promotes recycling by placing Paper Retriever bins, at no-cost, in highly visible areas at schools, churches and other non-profit organizations in the greater metro areas . . .

Update: Meijer's between Bethel and 161 has three Abitibi containers parked along side their brown dumpsters, all nestled at the south end of the parking lot under a screen of trees. They are good neighbors--they also have a container as you go in to leave plastic bags, provide alcohol handwipes beside the grocery carts, and employ handicapped. They also have friendly, well-trained staff, so if their values and prices meet your needs, drop off your newspapers and stop to shop.