1/11/16 Caucus

The City Council Discusses the Garbage problem in Perth Amboy
*Photo by Carolyn Maxwell

PERTH AMBOY  – Councilman Bill Petrick stated that there was a sewage problem on Lawrie Street.

Councilman Fernando Gonzalez agreed with this and also stated that there are some problems with the Sanitation Trucks that service Rector Street. “We need new garbage trucks because some of the the old ones have garbage dropping out of them. We also have a lot of garbage on Park Avenue, especially by the Railroad Ties. The garbage at Harbor Terrace is terrible. People who live across the street complain that it’s terrible, especially when they have company coming over from out of town and they see this. We need to make an effort to cleanup our town.”

Interim Business Administrator Peter Pelissier said, “We are in the process of purchasing another garbage truck and additional personnel to clean up garbage which will include weekends. The Mayor is on top of this.”

Councilman Joel Pabon said, “Don’t forget about the Budapest and Flynn School sections. Anywhere there’s a bodega or a school we need more cleanups. We have to educate the public.”

Pabon was also concerned about the lack of streetlights. He mentioned Bruck Avenue and Dillman Lane which are very dark streets. “Torres Market has been hit (robbed) twice. Whoever replaced the lights when they were changed did a disservice.” Pabon then added, “People need to get fined for litter.”

At this point Director of Public Works Frank Hoffman spoke. “The time for just giving out warning is past. We will be giving out fines. When new trucks are ordered, it takes between 8 to 10 months for delivery because of the fact that they are customized and have to meet our specific specifications.”

Councilman Fernando Irizarry stated, “Each Resident has to pick up after themselves. If they did that, our City would be much cleaner.”