>>Talk to your local zoning board members about allowing open top container storage in the new zoning for m-1 industrial land usage.<<

Dante and I both grew up really poor, working 60-80+ hour weeks to try to get ahead throughout our 20s and even to present day. During covid we risked our home, used our savings and took out loans to start our business. Since then, we have made an emphasis on giving back to the community. We regularly give items that are in usable condition back to the community, provide safety gear to pedestrians, made multiple $500-1,000 donations to organizations we believe in and volunteer our resources to better the community (roadside trash pickup, offering to install street lights in areas of South Glens Falls, pick up illegally dumped garbage and more). Can you think of another small dumpster company that comes close to that? We can't.

Recently there have been complaints about our yard (located on land zoned industrial use) which we store empty bins in between rentals due to its location across from a few residential houses, which has now drawn the attention of the Moreau Zoning Department. Before our occupancy it was an illegal dumping site and homeless drug addicts were living in the woods.

Currently the zoning code does not have a provision for storage of dumpsters, which means that they are technically an "unapproved use of space". We have met with zoning and code enforcement who both agree that it is a good use of the space and have no issues with our site other than the technicality presented in the zoning law. We were informed that the zoning office is currently re-writing the zoning laws to be more applicable to modern times.

Currently we are "stuck" as we have no control over what the zoning committee does and in order to remedy this we would have to file for a use variance. As part of the application for the variance, we would have to demonstrate that our tenancy impacts the return on investment for the owner of the property. Due to the fact that this complex is almost 30 acres and has approximately 50-60 "suites" that pay an estimated average of $2k a month, this becomes a challenging requirement of the current application for a variance. Alternatively we were told we could build a structure, but we do not own the land or have financial ability to build a massive pole barn to hold the bins that we own.

What's crazy to me in this situation is that there are many businesses that choose to rent long term, open top dumpsters. Those businesses rent them, fill them and they sit out in the rain and weather, potentially leaking or trash blowing out. These attract no scrutiny and there are no zoning issues with them, but if you have more than one container that is empty, it is an issue. What is the difference? 

Our presence has only been of benefit to the community and from a business standpoint, by operating in such a centralized location, we are able to offer one of the most affordable options for dumpsters and junk removal. Affordable options for these services make it more accessible for you or your neighbor to get rid of that old furniture, mattress or junk that everyone has and without these options, many people might just put that junk outside somewhere to deal with on a later date and some of our elderly clients would not be able to address this junk without a trustworthy team to come into their home and give them a hand.

Just in Moreau alone, there are dozens of properties within 10 minutes of our equipment yard that have tires, mattresses and old furniture decaying out next to thier garage and I'm sure that there are many more homes that are packed with clutter that could benefit from our services. Since opening, to date, we have hauled over 5,000 cubic yards of junk from the areas homes, yards and businesses to be disposed of in the correct manner. This would be the equivalent of an entire soccer field stacked 6ft tall with couches, mattresses, nick nacks and misc stuff.

So Dante and I are asking for the support of you, the local community, to voice your support of an affordable mom and pop style business run by a hard working, entrepreneurial couple. If hundreds of people can get angry enough to attend meetings for bio-char, maybe we can support a local business that is trying to better the area and help Moreau grow.

Talk to your local zoning board members about allowing open top containers to be stored on industrially zoned areas without the need for variances.