Resident urges ordinance to keep garbage cans off Seymour sidewalks

Mike Frank, a resident of 28 Woodside Avenue, told the Board of Selectpersons at a public hearing that garbage and recycling containers left on sidewalks are obstructing pedestrian passage and complicating snow removal. "One of the best things I've ever encountered being there," he said of the new sidewalks installed in 2021–22, but he added that many houses on his block place cans on the walk.

Frank said he remembered a rule addressing can placement but could not find it in town archives. "I swear when I was a lot younger... there was an ordinance that talked about the garbage can removal," he said, asking the board to consider locating or reinstating the language and to clarify expectations for residents.

Another resident who spoke during public comment said many households are entitled to two garbage and two recycling containers and that they do not want to leave bins on the sidewalk simply "to prove a point," noting the tension between practical collection needs and keeping walkways clear.

A board member responded that the can-placement concern has been raised in several neighborhoods and suggested the Board of Selectpersons could refer the matter to its Ordinance Committee for further review. The board did not take a formal vote on the issue during the hearing.

The hearing also included procedural remarks and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. No specific ordinance citation, fee, or enforcement mechanism was produced during public comment; the existence and text of any prior ordinance on can placement were described by speakers as "not found" or "not specified."