The eyesore is finally gone.
After weeks of trash accumulating around the Better World Books drop box in the River Mall Plaza on Downer Street, the town of Van Buren says the property owner hauled away the piles of electronics, carpet, clothing and other junk the morning of Oct. 16.
“That’s the end of that box, I would guess,” said Van Buren Supervisor Claude Sykes.
Sykes said Code Enforcement Officer Dave Pringle issued the property owner a violation for a similar buildup of garbage around the drop box about six weeks ago. The owner cleaned up the area, but “the pile grew back like a cancer,” Sykes said.
“I couldn’t believe how quick that evolved,” he said. “Seems like there’s people waiting and watching for when they can dump.”
After another call from codes to the property owner, the trash was hauled away Oct. 16.
Sykes said this isn’t the first time River Mall has had issues with a donation box. While the Better World Books box has only been in front of the former Rite Aid since this past spring, Sykes said similar problems with people leaving their unwanted items caused the property owner to do away with a donation box a few years ago.
“The mall owners are removing the box because people can’t follow the rules,” Sykes said.
Better World Books is a for-profit corporation based in Indiana that funds literacy ventures across the world by selling books left in its drop boxes. Better World Books did not respond to a request for comments from the Messenger.
Sykes said there are alternatives for people who want to get rid of unwanted items. The town’s website has a list of licensed trash haulers from which residents may choose.
“If they have a garbage service, they’ll take anything that’s there,” Sykes said.
While the Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency (OCRRA) stopped accepting unwanted electronics because funding from a state recycling law has run out, OCRRA lists electronics recycling options on its website at bit.ly/ocrraelectronics.
Even closer to home is the Rescue Mission Thrify Shopper, which is just around the corner from the blighted book drop.
“After those things are left to the elements they’re no good to anyone — like the Rescue Mission, which is so close to this drop off,” reader Wendy Clarke Dryden wrote on the Messenger’s Facebook page.
Erin Wisneski, marketing coordinator for the Rescue Mission Thrifty Shopper stores, said the Rescue Mission has many options for people who want to unload their unwanted furniture, clothes and other items.
“We have nine attended donation centers in the greater Syracuse area where an attendant will help you to unload your items and provide you with a donation tax form,” Wisneski said. “In addition, every one of our Thrifty Shopper stores also accept[s] donations, including our Baldwinsville Thrifty Shopper in River Mall Plaza.”
The Rescue Mission accepts clothing, shoes, toys, household items, sporting goods, electronics (except televisions) and kitchen appliances at its Thrifty Shopper stores and donation centers. Thrifty Shopper stores also accept most furniture, but they cannot take bed pillows, infant furniture, mattresses or sleeper sofas.
“All donations are brought to our Donation Redistribution Center in Liverpool, where they are sorted. The gently used items are sent to our Thrifty Shopper stores where they are sold; we also provide our own clients, as well as the clients of partnering organizations like Vera House with vouchers so they can get the items they need at no cost,” Wisneski said. “All proceeds from Thrifty Shopper sales are used to fund our mission of helping the hungry and homeless in our community.”
To learn more about where you can donate, visit cleanthatcloset.com. To schedule a furniture pickup, call 701-3843.
“By donating your unwanted items to the Rescue Mission, you are supporting our mission of helping those in need within the community,” Wisneski said. “And that’s not all — you are also helping organizations like Vera House and the Q Center. It is a win-win-win — you clean out the clutter, help others who are in need and reduce the amount of reusable items from ending up in a landfill.”
