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BUNNY WAYS: Kayla, 8, and Emma Whittaker, 5, hug the bunnies at the Easter in the Park event, held Sunday in Queen’s Park. See more photos at newwestrecord.ca.
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City takes aim at dangers of donation bins Theresa McManus tmcmanus@newwestrecord.ca
The City of New Westminster is contacting owners of clothing and donation bins to ensure the bins are safe – and warning owners that action could be forthcoming if they’re unsafe. Council has directed staff to forward a letter to the operators of clothing and donation bins in the city seeking confirmation that they have retrofitted or replaced
their bins to address safety-related concerns. A staff report states that there have been four deaths associated with clothing and donation bins in Metro Vancouver between 2015 and 2018. “From what we understand, most of these bins are being retrofitted or replaced.The letter was really to clarify if that work has been done,” said John Stark, the city’s senior social planner. “If we find out that there are bins that have not been replaced
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or retrofitted, we would bring that immediately back to council.” According to the report, there are eight clothing and donation bins in New Westminster, all of which are located on private property. Staff has heard that local bins have been retrofitted or replaced, but wants to confirm that as soon as possible. “I think there is some onus on operators to ensure they are not a public safety hazard,” Stark said.
“In the letter, we will be including more information than a polite ‘let us know.’We will be outlining some of the concerns, and could state that if we find that these bins are a public safety hazard that we will be seeking further redress from council.” Kim Deighton, the city’s manager of licensing and integrated services, said the city doesn’t currently have the legal standing with respect to bins on private property.
Staff noted, however, that if operators haven’t retrofitted or replaced problematic bins, the city could make changes to zoning bylaws that allow the city to address the concerns. Staff will report back to council after contacting the operators of the bins located in New Westminster. According to the report, a number of municipalities have banned or placed restrictions on clothing and donation bins.
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