No plastic bags in blue bins! Recycling rights and wrongs
Are you recycling right? Judging from what gets tossed into blue bins, probably not. All recyclables go into the same bin, says Courtney Bryson, Streets and Sanitation assistant deputy superintendent. But not the bag: It gets caught in the sorting conveyor belts.
Food containers need only a light rinse, Bryson says, but leftovers will contaminate the whole bin. Clean cardboard is ready to recycle but food contaminates the whole bin. A greasy pizza box liner should go in the trash. Foam cups and packing (plastics marked with a number 6) are not recyclable in blue bins. Neither is shredded paper, which scatters too easily.
The city eventually may fine homeowners for contaminated blue bins, Bryson said. That was a conversation starter: Many EVA members said neighbors were using their bins. She challenged the audience to take a recycling quiz; she spoke after WBEZ aired its own recycling tips.
Shake-It up for discussion
A public meeting is planned for late this month with representatives of the Shake-It restaurant proposed for the Grace Auto Body site at 820 N. Damen Ave. A revised draft plan of operations makes concessions to EVA and Ukrainian Village Neighborhood Association members but withdraws limits on outdoor space hours.
Ald. Brian Hopkins had asked Ohio-based Forward Hospitality Group to get community feedback though it was not seeking zoning changes. Renovation plans were last circulated in 2017. Members commented that the restaurateurs should be more forthcoming in addressing past concerns or that Hopkins take a more active role.
In another planning discussion, Aeslin Pup Hub is seeking a special use permit for overnight dog boarding at 1802-06 W. Chicago Ave.
