NE 8^th Ave East/West medians infront of my Home and East - all of which I've picked up and cleaned including street gutters along NE 8^th ave and NE 5^th Street and my storm drain.  

The Storm drain at corner of NE 8^th Ave and NE 4^th street is totally clogged as it never gets cleaned and the City waste just washes down into it.  So these 2 photos are for frame of reference on how clean I keep 8^th ave and 5^th st - at my expense on my time and dime.

As to the medians.  This is South side of NE 8^th Ave - once again someone going too fast hit this telephone pole - look how they left the old pole dangling.  If winds hit and this is broken loose it's a major safety hazard besides looking trashy - yet it's been like this for months!

The dangling light pole at corner of NE 8th Ave South Side and NE 5th Street

Also an ankle twister huge hole, filled with trash from old pole they never filled hole. The curb was cracked and the hole is significant which the photo does not capture.

Someone needs to send this over to traffic control and demand speed bumps on 8^th Ave - they literally drag race down this street.  In the past 3 months I've seen a car totalled that hit this pole head on, and one street down they flipped across medium and hit a tree head on.  Both times I was out gardending and could have been taken out.  It's infuriating this section is not better controlled with speed bumps and more ticketing!  One day someone drove up on sidewalk and almost took me and the dogs out then swerved at the last minute. It's one of the most accident prone (someone died hitting the round about on NE 9th st) and people crash between 9^th and Main all the time on NE 8^th Ave.

Corner of NE 8^th Ave and I think NE 7^th street - NORTH side of 8^th Ave - wether it's city or resident - you have to unsafely pull forward to see around this and what about the Fire hydrant access?

NE 5^th Terrace - North Side of 8^th Ave

All this overgowth over medians causing trash to pile up in street and then run into storm drains.

Another street all medians overgrown.  Believe this is NE 6^th street.

NE 5^th Street - NE 8^th AVE SOUTHSIDE - the cones are a huge tree appears to have fallen on house in private property - that's unrelated to City issue I'm addressing - but sidewalks are not edged and overtime many are just "grasswalks" especially when City trees/brush just hang halfway into the sidewalk forcing people into street walking.

Please keep in mind, I've got a lot of storm prep to manage for all the divisions i oversee - and these are not the "worst" just the most conveneint for me to snap real quick.

So if someone were to drive NE 8^th Ave between Main street and N.E. 9^th street it's painfully obvious how neglected this main thoroughfare is.  

They could also take some side streets NORTH off NE 8^th ave and it's even worse on the side streets, corners are totally blind, and it's a real traffic and pedestrian hazard - people walking in the streets where there are no sidewalks; or the sidwalks are so overgrown you can't see around them until you're almost into oncoming traffic.

I will pursue medical bills for the cracked sidewalk - can someone send me the legal or department that handles this?

Can someone loop in traffic control and someone take the lead on doing something about this NE 8^th ave DEATH TRAP!  And don't even get me started on how they use 8th Ave for their personal trash can - everyday trash flying out of windows into the median, shootings at the swamp on NE 9th and University, Drag racing, speeding.... When I lived on the boulvard for 14 years - I was slightly removed from the immediate threat, but returning back to this home 25 years later - it's just horrific compared to when we bought it back in 2023!  This entire area is just flat ignored/neglected and abused.

The situation is legitimately life threatening - and has already taken many pets and some lives!

Larina Hintze | Vice President Operations

352.473.2999 | FB.com/RaceTheFIRM

www.RaceTheFIRM.Com

  "We Drive Passion"

Ms. Hintze,

Thank you for your email. Yard waste and storm debris removal continues to be a fluid and evolving issue. Currently, the best information we have to provide is on our website at https://www.gainesvillefl.gov/Government-Pages/Government/Departments/Public-Works/Garbage-Recycling/Curbside-Collection-Services/Yard-Waste-Collection#section-1.

After this upcoming storm passes, we’ll look in the area on NE 8^th Avenue that you mentioned. It would still be helpful, if you were to provide come context as to the issue you are reporting in this area beyond the general description referencing this area as a “trash dump.”

Sincerely,

Tom Strickland | Recycling Coordinator

Public Works Department | Solid Waste Division | City of Gainesville 

phone 352-334-2330

email waste@gainesvillefl.gov 

Note: Under Florida law, email addresses are public records. If you do not want your email address released in response to a public-records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity. Instead, contact this office by phone or in writing.

Tom:

The frustration is the lack of response to the emails - which has not been acknowledged and only after ccing everyone did a prompt response come after several ignored emails over weeks of time which has lead to a compounded issue.

In order of importance, what is the plan to remove all the waste in light of a new storm threat which this yard waste is now a storm hazard?

Next, if refuse is not picked up as I've already detailed; of course leaves will rot off limbs that have sat for weeks - are you saying a vendor can miss collections for a month, then when they finally remove limbs and all the leaves fall off - they are allowed to just leave all that trash in the street?  That is what happened here, not citizens piling up leaves in bulk yard waste, but rather bulk yard waste rotting and when collected leaving a mess.

Also note the timeline, my complaint arrived well before the storm, the fact they missed those pre-storm pickups just compounded the issue - just as this weeks missed pickup has now compounded the current issue.  

As to "pinpointing" isn't the job of the city to send someone to review that area - N.E. 5^th Terrace to N.E. 9^th along North side of 8^th ave.  City will drive by to ticket citizens when someone complains right?  So consider this a citizen complaint on the City and the City should govern itself the same way it governs citizen complaints and go investigate.

At this point, I'm simply restating what I've already taken too much time to bring attention to and this is yet another example of precisely what leads to citizen frustration; passing the burden back onto the citizen rather than taking the time to thoroughly read, investigate and provide a solution.  

Lastly, please confirm we are out of yard waste collection (which resulted in prior 4 weeks of missed pick ups, resulted in last week missed pick up) and now has left the NE vulnerable to more hazards in the event the storm hits this area.

Is the city plan to do nothing about the storm hazards laying all around NE area? Is that what you are conveying here?  No plan.  No strategy.  No solution. 

It seems that pooling resources to grab all the yard waste and at least pile it somewhere away from homes and cars now, in the event they become storm projectiles causing damage is far better than "we have exceeded our limit - so the end!".

Thank you

Dear Ms. Hintze,

Thank you for your email, and we apologize for any frustrations you’ve experienced with your refuse collection services. Yard waste collection has been challenging in our community since the first storm passed through our area in early August. The volume of material has exceeded the normal weekly collection capacity. For Storm Yard Waste Debris Removal updates, please visit our website at https://www.gainesvillefl.gov/Government-Pages/Government/Departments/Public-Works/Garbage-Recycling/Curbside-Collection-Services/Yard-Waste-Collection#section-1.

To be collected, dried leaves or other loose debris must be containerized in brown paper lawn & leaf bags or in a resident’s personal containers, even when the leaves started off as green and attached to branches.

Can you pinpoint the “trash dump” area along NE 8^th Ave. you mentioned? Is it litter on the ground or an illegal dumping issue?

Sincerely,

Tom Strickland | Recycling Coordinator

Public Works Department | Solid Waste Division | City of Gainesville 

phone 352-334-2330

email waste@gainesvillefl.gov 

Note: Under Florida law, email addresses are public records. If you do not want your email address released in response to a public-records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity. Instead, contact this office by phone or in writing.

To:
City Manager

City Commissioners

Et al.

With this past week missed and a storm coming what is the plan to prevent all the trash piled up from potentially becoming a storm hazard?  

After formally putting a request through the City portal, I've sent notices about the trash pickup 8/26, 8/29, 9/4 and attached 9/19 - the last 3 emails have not been responded to.  Now yard trash has another missed pick up and the last time it was missed for 4 weeks before finally being picked up.  Yet GLF left all the dried leaves in the street (see below photos). The email regarding this was ignored and I ended up cleaning up the mess myself.

 

I'm looping in the City Commissioners and City Manager.  We pay some of the highest property taxes in Florida and receive some of the poorest service.  Public servants, are not serving.  They ignore emails, and when you go in person they are often rude or give you the run around, pointing fingers at a lack of staff, lack of budget or another department.

 

The N.E. Medians look terrible; some are so overgrown they create a traffic hazard, the storm drains are clogged and the city said there is only money to street sweep once per month. The vendor who hazard pruned this year, cut beautiful landscaped yard plants that were barely over the sidewalk but left entire areas totally overgrown dropping hazardous limbs onto 8th Ave or sidewalks. There is also no edging of the medians which traps even more trash.

 

I would like a reply when this weeks missed trash will be picked up, and that GFL will be held accountable to not leave all the dried leaves in the street to just clog up the storm drains.

I would also like someone to look at the areas on the North side of 8th ave between 5th Terrace and 9th street - they are a trash dump and have been like that for more than a decade.

 

On another note, the sidewalks that were cracked during City work over 25 years ago never got repaired and my daughter who is a D1 athlete twisted her ankle.  I'd like to know who is responsible for handling repairs as I will be sending her medical bills.  I understand the city just lost a suit for an injury related to an ATT manhole left open that a biker fell into.

The point being is the City has the opportunity to manage these vendors more aggressively, build clauses into contracts that vendors will be held liable for neglecting areas that cause harm and suits for the city.

 

Without accountability the harm falls to taxpayers.  If the City chooses to ignore tax payers who are part of the solution by keeping our entire street and medians clean; since the City can't afford to; then the City can pay the bills associated with that neglect.

 

I do hope this email will motivate the city to take a more public service approach, to hold GFL more accountable, and to hold them to the same standard that tax payers who are held to and ticketed if we leave our yard waste just piled up in the street.

 

The double standard is what causes the citizen frustration.  

 

I've paid out of pocket for 30 years for items that are already paid for with my taxes, but got tired of trying to get the city to respond; like with the trash and end up doing it myself. I'm not willing to do that anymore.  I was ignored 25 years ago when I repeatedly sent emails and made calls notifying the city the road work cracked the sidewalk and now my daughter suffered an ankle sprain.  

 

All these emails are far too much effort on my part to get traction on things I already pay property taxes to have addressed.

P.S. When GFL did the last pick up using the claw, they also damaged the sidewalk and crushed it.  It's where the entire N.E. 5^th ave street piles the trash on stones and a designated area so that a. Trucks don't have to stop on N.E. 8^th ave and b. So that it's easy to collect for all 4 homes on N.E. 5^th Ave in one convenient location.  Once the current yard waste is removed, the cracked sidewalk is clearly visible.

 

Thank you.

From: Larina Hintze <larinahintze@gmail.com>
Date: September 4, 2024 at 8:28:22?AM EDT
To: "Thomas, Candace" <thomascr9@cityofgainesville.org>
Cc: "Lawrence, Faith A" <LawrenceFA@cityofgainesville.org>
Subject: Re: 502 NE 8TH AVE - MISSED YARD WASTE

Hi - this is the trash left by GFL after finally picking up yard trash which had been missed for 3 weeks.

Of course the leaves dried and fell off - that’s what happens when trash is left in a pile for almost a month - and where is the pride in workmanship?  

It’s a violation to leave yard waste in the streets - it gets into the storm drains - is the lecture endured from city reps to citizens - yet this how a city vendor conducts themselves?

Is there a commitment from this department to hold them accountable and have them correct this today?