On November 30th, 2011 I attended the Columbus City Council public meeting regarding Mayor Coleman's' city wide residential ONLY recycling program to start in Spring 2012 if approved by City Council. Knowing that in the spark of the moment I might not verbally convey all that I want to, I wrote the below letter and provided it directly to the council members. It was a very informative meeting.
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Columbus, Ohio - November 30, 2011
Ref: Columbus Citywide Recycling Program
Dear Columbus City Council Members, Mayor Coleman and City Planning Officials,
I was originally introduced to Columbus in 1992 when I moved here with my Ex after both serving in the US Army in Germany. I attended OSU during my early twenties and grew very fond of Columbus. I met my soul mate / life partner of 12 years, and not counting, who grew up here in Columbus. My past technology consulting business lead us to have to leave Columbus to better support my then Wall Street clients. For the past twelve years we've lived in New York City, Orlando, Fl, Washington D.C. / Alexandria, VA area and Los Angeles / Long Beach, CA for four years where we adopted our son. In all these areas Recycling by the cities were not only provided it was mandatory with fines for not recycling. It became an easy part of every day life and permeated the culture because it was mandatory throughout all venues as well, restaurants, bars, festivals and events, etc. It was simply expected and provided.
After the adoption of our son was finalized in and under the wonderfully equality driven California laws, the economy started to tank.... well... tank harder. We started to explore where we'd like to move to make our long term home. No more moving around at the whim of Fortune 500 level companies. We considered many cities, Phoenix, Portland, Orlando, St. Louis, Chicago and even considered moving back to Germany. All in all we felt that Columbus had the most to offer the entire family and our futures.
Many attributes of the city played into our decision and we returned exactly a year ago this week. After searchingi for a few months we moved into our permanent home in March in the wonderful North West community of Indian Hills. (Directly across from the entrance to Antrim Park. )
Since we have moved back to Columbus we have had our second trash can designated for recyclables. When the pile of recyclables gets to a certain size, I load it in my truck and take it to a drop off location. It is part of our lives. We've joined the City's Green Spot program and proudly display it on our home's front door. We've seen the City's efforts to create more awareness through the rain garden effort that provides education and rain barrels. The city has made very clear efforts to be a Greener culture. Citywide mandatory recycling is, in my opinion, a natural progression harnessing the current momentum and establishing a wider culture shift toward sustainability. I was thrilled to hear news of this proposal and have mentioned in several conversations.
The city must be a leader of local and global citizenship in which sustainability is a key factor. Resources ARE LIMITED. We must shed the childlike ignorance of disposable consumerism bliss as a culture and dawn the challenge of making advancements and innovation that include our impact on our environment as a key determinant of success.
I implore you to pass the Citywide recycling proposal before you.... for the city, the state, our nation and our responsibility as a global citizen. Our actions matter. It tells a lot about who we are as individuals and what we value as a culture.
Kind regards,
Dennis Velco
Artist
Fine Art Finger Painter
ColumbusArts.com Profile: http://www.columbusarts.com/artists/364-dennis-velco/
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