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Residents and small landlords press council on Kings Road damage and oppose proposed garbage sticker plan
Summary
During public comment at the Jan. 13 Schenectady City Council meeting, a resident reported repeated property damage on Kings Road and said she has filed a complaint with the New York State attorney general; a small-landlord group criticized the city's proposed bulk-garbage sticker system and urged a simpler fee structure.
Schenectady — At the Jan. 13, 2025 Schenectady City Council meeting residents described repeated property damage on Kings Road and a small-landlord group urged council members to reconsider the city's proposed bulk-garbage sticker plan.
Tracy Collins, who spoke during general public comment, said her property on Kings Road has been damaged repeatedly and detailed long-standing concerns about speeding, heavy vehicles, and enforcement. "My property and home has been damaged 8 times and my mailbox taken down twice," Collins said. She said she filed a complaint with the New York State Attorney General’s office seeking an investigation into local enforcement and warned she intends to sue the city and individual officials if further damage occurs.
Chris Morris, director of Slick's Connected e Landlords Influencing Change, told the council the group represents "an embattled group of small landlords, realtors, and property managers" and criticized a proposed garbage program that would require stickers for bulk-item pickup. Morris said members found the sticker plan "cumbersome and time consuming" and urged the council to consider a simplified tiered fee tied to unit count as an alternative. He also said the sticker plan "is not set in stone" and that the group has been in communication with council members and staff.
Council members acknowledged the concerns raised. Several said engineering, enforcement and staffing constraints limit the speed and range of actions the city can take immediately, and they urged residents to continue reporting problem locations so staff can gather evidence to support targeted fixes.
Collins’s remarks also included requests for enforcement of weight-limit signage and for more active attention to neighborhood damage caused by oversized or speeding vehicles; she listed multiple incidents and cited a failed guardrail and continuing structural impacts on her property. Morris invited council members to attend a landlord group meeting in February to discuss alternatives to the sticker proposal.
Neither public comment resulted in a council vote; councilmembers responded with offers to pass concerns to appropriate staff and with reminders about how requests for engineering or enforcement typically proceed.
