Committee presses outreach, education and targeted enforcement on tire storage and illegal dumping

Tire-shop owners and city code staff met with the Garland Community Service Committee on Sept. 25 to discuss outside tire storage, illegal dumping and options for improving collection and recycling. The committee directed staff to begin an education and outreach campaign, ramp up voluntary compliance with the existing 5‑by‑5‑by‑5 outside‑storage rule, and develop a separate, broader item on tire dumping and recycling.

Chair Chris Sutton opened the item as a continuation of an Aug. 28 discussion about outside storage. Brian (city code staff) explained that Garland’s ordinance limits outside storage/display to items no more than 5 feet high, 5 feet from a building and for no more than five days per month — the “5 by 5 by 5” rule — and that the city had identified 56 businesses that are tire-specific but expects the number to grow when auto-repair shops that sell tires are counted.

Representatives from local tire businesses described practical constraints. Jason Squire, store manager at Firestone on Levon Drive, said used tires removed from vehicles become the property of a recycler (Firestone uses a contractor such as Liberty Tire) and are typically collected once a week, but pickup schedules and bin capacity vary. “Sometimes we sell more tires than we can put in our bin,” Squire said, and shops occasionally stack tires temporarily out of convenience; he also reported an increase in stolen tires when bins are left at the rear of properties.

Smaller operators described similar problems and added that third parties illegally drop tires at shop fronts to avoid recycling fees, leaving small shops to absorb the cost. Kathy Vansel, owner of Payless Tire, and Scott Zaguppur of BJ Tire Center described paying for weekly recycling manifests and keeping state-required manifest paperwork for each recycling pickup. City staff noted Garland spends roughly $15,000 annually to dispose of illegally dumped tires at city facilities; staff also said enforcement and inspection resources are limited and that a full, citywide enforcement program would be labor‑intensive.

The committee heard a mix of immediate, low‑cost fixes and proposals that require more staff time or funding: targeted education mailers, an agreed 90‑day voluntary compliance window before stepped enforcement, better coordination with tire recyclers (to increase pickup frequency where needed), and possible city-supported recycling options for shops that are victims of illegal dumping. The group agreed that code staff should be flexible for shops that show good‑faith progress toward compliance and that screening (opaque fencing or covers) should be enforced where storage is visible from public rights-of-way.

Next steps and outcome: The committee did not enact new ordinances or immediate punitive actions. Instead it directed staff to mount an educational outreach campaign (mailers and targeted communications), expand the engagement to all auto-related businesses (not just tire-specific shops), develop a separate “tires: recycling/dumping” agenda item to scope potential city programs and funding, and return with a status update in approximately six months. Staff said they would prioritize voluntary compliance, begin routine screening enforcement steps, and coordinate code, sanitation and police on illegal-dump reporting and evidence collection. The committee also encouraged shop owners to file police reports and retain manifests when illegal dumping occurs.

Quotes from the meeting: “We want to make sure that our tire shops know what our ordinances are, what our expectations are,” Brian said. Jason Squire said, “One of the biggest problems … is we’re selling more tires than we can put in our bin.” A small‑shop owner asked the city to consider ways to help offset disposal costs when shops are targeted by illegal dumping; staff suggested scoping potential city-assisted recycling options.

Ending: The committee’s direction emphasizes outreach and voluntary compliance combined with targeted enforcement and a new follow-up item to study recycling capacity, cost-sharing and illegal-dumping accountability. No fines or license changes were adopted at the meeting.