COVID-19 Home Test Distribution on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 4 p.m., WHHS, 1 Circle St.

COVID-19 home test distribution slated for 4-7 p.m. today at WHHS

WEST HAVEN, Jan. 5, 2022 — West Haven’s drive-thru distribution of free COVID-19 at-home rapid tests will take place in the parking lot of West Haven High School, 1 Circle St., from 4-7 p.m. today.

Each vehicle will receive one box of two tests and four N95 face masks on a first-come, first-served basis while supplies last.

Please note that West Haven has received half of its test allocation from the state.

The distribution is for West Haven residents only. Proof of residence, such as a driver’s license, is required.

Vehicles must use the school’s Circle Street entrance off Kelsey Avenue.

This is a grab-and-go event. Face masks are required regardless of vaccination status.

Mayor Nancy R. Rossi, third from left, dedicates West Haven’s first Purple Pantry Box at the First Congregational Church on Tuesday with, from left, volunteer Michelle Caprio, church community outreach Chairman Phil Liscio, the Rev. E. Carl Howard, the senior minister who oversees the church’s outreach projects, and pantry coordinator Nicole Randolph. The pantry provides nonperishable food items for residents in need at the Campbell Avenue entrance to the church. (City Photo/Michael P. Walsh)

West Haven’s 1st Purple Pantry Box dedicated

WEST HAVEN, Jan. 5, 2022 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi joined Purple Pantry Boxes founder and Director Susan Brown on Tuesday to dedicate West Haven’s first Purple Pantry Box at the First Congregational Church, 464 Campbell Ave.

Rossi and Brown dedicated the pantry, which provides nonperishable food items for residents in need, with church community outreach Chairman Phil Liscio, pantry coordinator Nicole Randolph, volunteer Michelle Caprio and the Rev. E. Carl Howard, the senior minister who oversees the church’s outreach projects.

Liscio said the pantry is accessible 24/7 at the Campbell Avenue entrance to the church on the Green. It consists of a purple wooden box with a door mounted atop a stand made of wooden pallets.

Brown founded Purple Pantry Boxes in March 2020 as a single pop-up pantry in Milford to feed those in need.

In less than two years, the pantry has grown to a dozen locations in New Haven County, establishing the motto: “Take what you need, donate if you can.”

Brown, of Milford, spends part of each morning making sure the pantries are stocked with shelf-stable items, such as cans of protein, vegetables and beans, as well as pasta, water, protein drinks, snacks and bread.

Brown started the pantry during a short break from her job as a public defender. In June 2021, she made the break permanent, retiring from public defense after serving just over 33 years, most recently for the Ansonia-Milford Judicial District.

“We want people to have easy access to staple food items while also engaging members of the community to donate,” said Brown, who has made Purple Pantry Boxes a nonprofit to raise money and keep up with demand.

The church is collaborating with Brown on the community outreach project, said Liscio, who is founder and president of the not-for-profit charity Westies Care.

Brown said she will oversee the pantry’s daily stocking for a month before Randolph takes over.

“The First Congregational Church of West Haven and Westies Care are excited to partner with Susan Brown and Purple Pantry Boxes to offer assistance to the citizens of West Haven who are challenged with food insecurity,” Liscio said. “We are hopeful this is the first of many locations to be launched this year.”

Liscio also collects food for the pantry at the West Haven Emergency Assistance Task Force, 674 Washington Ave.

Schedule announced for bulk trash pickup, e-waste drop-off in 2022

WEST HAVEN, Jan. 5, 2022 — The 2022 bulk trash pickup weeks are April 25-29 and Sept. 12-16.

West Haven residents are reminded to separate metals, recyclables and regular trash from bulk trash and put them out no more than 24 hours before pickup. Violations carry a $100 fine per daily offense, Public Works Commissioner Tom J. McCarthy said.

Residents are also reminded to “Put a Lid on It!” and use lids on all trash cans. Rain-soaked trash costs West Haven 10 times more at the dump, said McCarthy, adding that using trash can lids will save the city money by reducing the weight of trash and cost of tipping fees.

Bulk items include couches, chairs, tables, carpeting, padding and fencing, which may not exceed 6 feet in length. No building materials, tires, mattresses, propane tanks or hazardous waste are accepted.

Options for disposing of building materials include renting a dumpster or bringing the materials to a disposal facility for a fee.

Tires can be brought to Town Fair Tire, 63 Boston Post Road, Orange, for a fee of $2.75 per tire.

Mattresses can be disposed of for free in a container at the city’s highway maintenance garage, 1 Collis St. Mattresses must be dry.

Hazardous waste can be dropped off for free at HazWaste Central, 90 Sargent Drive, New Haven. HazWaste is open Saturday mornings from mid-May through October.

Propane tanks can be brought to Taylor Rental, 304 Boston Post Road, Orange, for a fee of $10.60 per tank.

The amount of bulk trash per collection is limited to 6 cubic yards, which is equal to a pile of trash about 6 feet long, 6 feet wide and 4 ½ feet high.

Homeowners are required to rent a dumpster or hire a junk removal service at their expense if trash exceeds 6 cubic yards. Otherwise, trash exceeding 6 cubic yards will be left at the curb, and a $100 fine per daily offense will be imposed, McCarthy said.

To prevent a potential fine, property owners should familiarize themselves with the city’s trash guidelines at Public Works.

Bulk trash must be generated by the customer at the residential unit where it is collected. Trash will not be collected if it is generated by anyone other than the resident of the home.

Bulk items must be separated and orderly. Do not place them next to a mailbox or utility pole or close to a fence, McCarthy said.

Also, do not place bulk items in front of a vacant lot or home — they will not be collected, he said.

Details at Bulk Trash Pickup.

In addition to bulk trash, the city picks up metals, including household appliances, also known as white goods, and toilets. To schedule a pickup on their curbside collection day, residents must call the Highway Department at 203-937-3644 or 203-937-3585. Appliance doors must be removed.

The 2022 pickup schedule for leaf bags is April 1-June 1 and Oct. 1-Dec. 31. The 2022 pickup schedule for grass bags is May 16-Nov. 18. The bags are picked up on residents’ weekly collection days. Leaves and grass clippings must be in separate biodegradable paper bags and will not be accepted if they are in plastic bags.

The city also picks up brush that is cut into 3-to-6-foot lengths and tied in small bundles, no more than 70 pounds. Logs and stumps are prohibited.

Residents can bring grass clippings as well as bagged leaves and untied brush to the compost site, 1 Kimberly Ave., from 6:30 a.m.-2 p.m. weekdays and, starting in June, from 6:30-11:30 a.m. Saturdays. The first cubic yard of compost is free with proof of residence. Additional compost costs $25 per cubic yard. Residents must bring their own buckets and shovels.

For a $50 fee, the Department of Public Works will deliver up to 2 cubic yards of compost to city homes.

For electronic items, including TVs, the 2022 e-waste drop-off days are Jan. 15, April 23, June 18 and Sept. 17.

Residents can drop off electronic recyclables — typically anything that contains a circuit board or needs a battery — from 8 a.m.-noon at the highway maintenance garage.

The city is partnering with Take 2 Inc. of Waterbury, a state-approved recycler and collector of universal e-waste devices, to collect residential electronic items on a quarterly basis.

The collection is free for residents who have such items as computers, monitors, printers, keyboards, modems, computer mice, tablet computers, TVs, VCRs, DVD players, photocopiers, fax machines, scanners, video game machines, digital media players, personal digital assistants, stereo equipment, telephones, cellphones, cameras, microwaves and other small appliances.

Anything that has refrigerant, including air conditioners and dehumidifiers, is not accepted. Those items are considered white goods, and residents are asked to schedule a pickup on their curbside collection day by calling the Highway Department.

Details at E-waste Drop-off.

For the e-waste drop-off, residents are asked to heed the following guidelines:

Stay in your vehicle.
Vehicles will be spaced out. Event workers will remove electronics from your vehicle. There should be no interaction between residents and workers.
No mattresses or box springs will be disposed of at the moment.
No smoke detectors, ballasts or hazardous waste — lighter fluid, liquids, paint — will be accepted.
Electronic items left curbside will be tagged with information on the e-waste schedule and must be removed, or face a potential fine.

Reminders about Christmas trees, holiday trash pickup in West Haven

WEST HAVEN, Jan. 5, 2022 — The city reminds residents not to put Christmas trees in plastic bags or stands for curbside pickup.

Lights must also be removed from Christmas trees. Plastic bags and other items can become tangled in the machine that grinds the trees into compost.

Christmas trees will be picked up in January and February only. Residents needing a pickup after Feb. 28 will be charged a $25 fee. Christmas trees can also be brought to the compost site at 1 Kimberly Ave.

Also, residents are reminded that four 2022 holidays will delay curbside pickup one day.

Affordable Waste Systems LLC of East Haven, the city’s private contractor for rubbish and recyclables, will not pick up rubbish, recyclables or metals on Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day and Thanksgiving.

If a holiday falls on a weekday, pickup for that week will move ahead one day. But when a holiday like Thanksgiving falls on a Thursday, only Thursday and Friday’s collections will move up a day.

Thanksgiving is also the only holiday that excludes metal pickup in those affected districts.

Separate metals and recyclables from regular trash.

Detailed information about the city’s trash and recycling guidelines is available at Bulk Trash Pickup.

Tax help offered in West Haven

WEST HAVEN, Jan. 5, 2022 — The West Haven Senior Center is offering a free tax preparation service to help low-to-middle-income taxpayers.

The AARP Tax-Aide program is available by appointment from 9-11 a.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, starting Feb. 2, in the senior center at the upper level of the Johnson Community Center, 201 Noble St. Face masks are required regardless of vaccination status.

Special attention is given to help those 50 and older fill out federal tax forms.

The service, which includes tax counseling, is offered by trained volunteer tax preparers from AARP in cooperation with the Internal Revenue Service.

For an appointment, call the senior center at 203-937-3507.