JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – Waste woes continue across Northeast Florida as people’s trash piles up.
City leaders are blaming a labor shortage with the contractors hired for curbside pickup.
In the city of Jacksonville, recycling curbside pickup is temporarily suspended so collectors can catch up on other garbage collection. The city is offering free drop-off spots for recycling at 14 city parks.
But recycling will still be picked up in Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach and Jacksonville Beach.
Leaders there said they are not hit as hard as Jacksonville but are addressing complaints.
Jacksonville Beach resident Brandon Vossberg waits patiently each day for his waste to be picked up.
“Every day is different,” he said, talking about how confusing the pickup schedule has been for trash, yard waste and recycling. “I’m not quite sure.”
A pile of yard waste and larger garbage has been in front of his home for weeks, and it’s becoming an eyesore. It’s also a sore subject because he can’t seem to get answers about why it hasn’t been picked up.
“The word I’d like to use is ‘inconsistency,’” he said. “I’ve called Jacksonville Beach a few times to clarify what days are they picking up. They were supposed to pick up today and they missed.”
The contractor is behind after a company merger and a labor shortage according to Jacksonville Beach Mayor Chris Hoffman, who said it’s hard to hire people right now.
She said she’s gotten a huge number of complaints.
“We have had a lot of heavy wind and storms, all the palm trees that you see around here they blow palm fronds down. That yard waste starts to pile up and it gets frustrating,” she said.
She told News4Jax the company promises they’re getting caught up.
“I feel optimistic at the moment,” she noted. “This week seems to have gotten better.”
Unlike the city of Jacksonville, recycling pickup will carry on despite some delays.
News4Jax checked with Neptune Beach. Officials there said they have no major problems with their vendor and will keep picking up recycling. A manager with Atlantic Beach, Kevin Hogencamp, said everything’s going well for their residents and all services remain in place.
Residents like Vossberg said they just want to get what they’re paying for.
“We were looking at the bill the other day, and every fee was combined, and I was, like, ‘Why am I paying for this if they’re not even picking it up on time?’” Vossberg said.
City leaders urge residents with collection concerns to reach out to the public works department directly:
Neptune Beach: https://www.ci.neptune-beach.fl.us/waste-recycling
Atlantic Beach: https://coab.us/42/Solid-Waste-Collection
Jacksonville Beach: https://www.jacksonvillebeach.org/304/Sanitation-Services