Residents press DeSoto council on trash, bulk pickup and code enforcement; city says policy review underway

Several residents ordered three minutes each at the City of DeSoto's Aug. 4 meeting to urge the council to restore or revise trash, bulk and brush pickup policies and to strengthen code enforcement. Speakers described missed or partial pickups, a perceived decline in proactivity from code officers and concerns about a contractor's performance.

Why it matters: Residents said trash and bulk-collection practices affect neighborhood appearance, public health perceptions and residents' willingness to remain in DeSoto. Multiple speakers called for the city to rescind the current contract with Republic or to return to a prior pickup schedule.

What residents said: Diane Kendrick Hawkins asked the council to "go back and look at how trash brush removal in particular is being handled" and said a change to an on-call system made collection less effective than previous street-by-street pickups. Debbie Hicks and Jeanette Hutchinson described code-enforcement cases where adjacent properties with visible overgrowth or trash were not addressed, and Hutchinson urged the city to "return to the previous schedule by picking up the trash on a weekly basis." Hutchinson also said workers complained the current arrangements caused repeated visits and inefficiency.

City response: The city manager said staff is "looking at revamping that entire policy of brush and bulk pickup, to be more of a standardized process rather than having an on call type of process" and that Deputy City Manager Eisen Cameron is working on the matter. The manager said staff would "have a robust publicizing" of any new changes and might run a neighborhood demonstration of the revised approach.

Deputy City Manager Eisen Cameron told the council, "We have heard the residents' concerns and, we are reevaluating our current level of service and trying to, ensure that we can get back to providing the level of service that the city is used to receiving and the residents are accustomed to receiving."

Requests and unresolved items: Jeanette Hutchinson asked the council to rescind the current Republic contract "due to its ineffectiveness"; the transcript records the request but shows no recorded council vote, motion or directive to rescind the contract during the meeting. Residents also asked for clarity about billing and fees when bulk pickup does not meet expectations.

Next steps recorded: Staff said they are reevaluating the pickup policy and would publicize changes; no date for a report back to council was recorded in the meeting minutes presented.

Ending: Council members acknowledged resident concerns and staff said staff would pursue policy changes and public outreach; residents asked for a clearer timetable and for the city to ensure contractors meet service expectations.