Raise funds to cover disposal cost
Donation protected
http://www.keyt.com/video/lompoc-man-makes-plan-to-clean-up-abandoned-shopping-carts-and-trash-from-riverbed/755095443
What is my goal? To clean up Lompoc! Lompoc has a major problem with homeless people and unfortunately that brings problems of trash and stolen shopping carts, among other things. My plan is to collect these stolen carts from around town and the riverbed area, sanitize them, and then return them to the rightful owners. For each 1 cart I collect, I will collect at a minimum 1 bag of trash to properly dispose of. How does this benefit the city? First impressions last forever, and often times the first thing you see next to a “Welcome to Lompoc. The city of Arts and Flowers” sign is a few shopping carts and a bunch of trash next to it. I want to clean up the appearance of this wonderful city 1 cart at a time. Each of these carts cost hundreds of dollars and when they are stolen and have to be replaced by a business, that money comes of their pockets. Which means prices of products can’t be as low as they can due to having to compensate for theft.
Now comes the tricky part that many people have asked about. When collecting these carts, often time they are filled with or surrounded by a homeless persons belongings. I too have a heart. I WILL not just throw away everything someone owns. When an occasion like this occurs, photos will be taken and the items will be watched for a set number of days. If the items have not been touched or moved by the end of that time, then the items will be picked up and properly disposed of. As a human being, I can not morally feel ok with taking clothes, food, a bed, or shelter without being 100% sure that whoever owned it has left it behind and is not returning for it. It’s a touchy situation which will take time to perfect.
This is not a one time project. This is an ongoing daily issue. Believe it or not, we have hundreds of homeless people living in multiple camps / communities in the river bed. Each day they are leaving new carts around town and entrances to the riverbed. Most businesses have a cart return service, but they only go collect carts when called and told locations of carts. They do not actively patrol the city for stolen carts, which is what this city needs!
I am open to donations or volunteers to help out. Donations will be used for covering the cost of disposing of the trash. For every 2 carts, I can collect up to 8 bags of trash. That means for each 2 carts I am spending $20 to dispose trash. This cost multiples fast and is an expense that will always be a large factor in how long I can continue to do this service.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns... PLEASE feel free to contact me via messenger or email. Thank you!
-Tyler Santos
100% or donations will go towards the expenses of operation. Commercial grade sanitizing sprays, trash bags, disposal fees for trash, and fuel for transportation. For now I am using only my pick up truck, but I have high hopes to get support from local businesses and eventually earn enough to purchase a small utility trailer.
What is my goal? To clean up Lompoc! Lompoc has a major problem with homeless people and unfortunately that brings problems of trash and stolen shopping carts, among other things. My plan is to collect these stolen carts from around town and the riverbed area, sanitize them, and then return them to the rightful owners. For each 1 cart I collect, I will collect at a minimum 1 bag of trash to properly dispose of. How does this benefit the city? First impressions last forever, and often times the first thing you see next to a “Welcome to Lompoc. The city of Arts and Flowers” sign is a few shopping carts and a bunch of trash next to it. I want to clean up the appearance of this wonderful city 1 cart at a time. Each of these carts cost hundreds of dollars and when they are stolen and have to be replaced by a business, that money comes of their pockets. Which means prices of products can’t be as low as they can due to having to compensate for theft.
Now comes the tricky part that many people have asked about. When collecting these carts, often time they are filled with or surrounded by a homeless persons belongings. I too have a heart. I WILL not just throw away everything someone owns. When an occasion like this occurs, photos will be taken and the items will be watched for a set number of days. If the items have not been touched or moved by the end of that time, then the items will be picked up and properly disposed of. As a human being, I can not morally feel ok with taking clothes, food, a bed, or shelter without being 100% sure that whoever owned it has left it behind and is not returning for it. It’s a touchy situation which will take time to perfect.
This is not a one time project. This is an ongoing daily issue. Believe it or not, we have hundreds of homeless people living in multiple camps / communities in the river bed. Each day they are leaving new carts around town and entrances to the riverbed. Most businesses have a cart return service, but they only go collect carts when called and told locations of carts. They do not actively patrol the city for stolen carts, which is what this city needs!
I am open to donations or volunteers to help out. Donations will be used for covering the cost of disposing of the trash. For every 2 carts, I can collect up to 8 bags of trash. That means for each 2 carts I am spending $20 to dispose trash. This cost multiples fast and is an expense that will always be a large factor in how long I can continue to do this service.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns... PLEASE feel free to contact me via messenger or email. Thank you!
-Tyler Santos
100% or donations will go towards the expenses of operation. Commercial grade sanitizing sprays, trash bags, disposal fees for trash, and fuel for transportation. For now I am using only my pick up truck, but I have high hopes to get support from local businesses and eventually earn enough to purchase a small utility trailer.
Organizer
Tyler Santos
Organizer
Lompoc, CA