Why is it that after the “fall cleanup,” our neighborhoods don’t look any cleaner? Based on the sheer volume of detritus left in the streets, it would seem that Durango’s lawns should look like they were pruned by Japanese bonsai artists, our bathrooms should appear on HGTV and Fort Lewis College students should never want for free couches. Why do my tax dollars go for a seemingly “wasted” task? Sign me, Owns a truck and knows my way to the transfer station
There are many factors explaining why Durango looks so untidy even after junk gets picked up.
First of all, Durango is a naturally junky Western town. It’s just how the West is.
Oh sure, things have cleaned up nicely in the past couple of decades. And Durango is still a very neat place, but it’s just not very neat.
Durango doesn’t deliberately try to look unkempt. Most residents simply don’t care about appearances. Just look at the unofficial but widely accepted local dress code.
Attend a dinner party wearing a T-shirt and a fleece vest covered in dog hair? Sure!
Gold lamé with animal-print leggings and red clogs? Hey, it worked great during Snowdown!
So naturally, no one has a problem with piles of warped wood and a couple of tires next to the garage. In Durango, the difference between “boneyard” and “backyard” is just three letters.
There’s another factor: More than half of all Durango’s houses are rentals.
According to the 2010 U.S. Census, there were 7,017 “occupied housing units” in Durango. Some 3,367 of those were owner-occupied. The rest, a total of 3,650 or 52 percent, were rented.
Let’s be clear. Action Line is not anti-rental. It’s just that folks who rent have a different relationship with real estate. After all, they don’t own the place and could leave at the end of the month.
Temporary occupancy does not prioritize fine landscaping or large-scale home improvement.
But what’s the main reason why there’s so much autumnal jetsam? All we do is swap junk. Seriously.
When fall cleanup comes around in October, you’ll see people driving around the neighborhoods, circling like hungry buzzards. They’re all checking out the piles of trash. When they come upon an irresistible treasure, they snap it up!
And it’s not just hoarders with vehicles. Just the other day, Mrs. Action Line saw a guy with a $3,000 bike vigorously combing through a pile of roadside debris. (Like there’s really going to be a box of diamonds under that leg-less lawn chair and broken vacuum cleaner.)
Action Line has seen local scavengers gather up flooring scraps, old water heaters, worn-out toys, questionable small appliances, broken windows and even a wheelbarrow with a flat tire.
OK. The wheelbarrow was a “rescue.” Ahem, by Action Line. Allow an explanation.
After a summer of vigorous use, Action Line’s prized wheelbarrow developed a nasty crack in the bucket. But no one sells a replacement bucket – you have to buy a whole new wheelbarrow.
Good fortune came along in the form of a neighbor’s castoff.
The junked wheelbarrow had an unfixable flat and a cracked handle, but the bucket was OK. It was a garden-gear love connection right there in the alley.
Action Line dragged the derelict equipment home and salvaged the bucket. Mrs. Action Line came out to inspect the repairs.
“Wow, good as new,” she proclaimed.
That brings us to the major reason that Durango neighborhoods don’t look any cleaner after fall cleanup: We don’t actually clean – we exchange.
“Fall cleanup” is merely a “fall transfer.”
“Reduce, reuse, recycle” is one thing. But, as you pass the ubiquitous junk piles across town, remember the six most dangerous words uttered on a late autumn day in Durango:
“Hey, this might come in handy!”
Email questions to actionline@durangoherald.com or mail them to Action Line, The Durango Herald, 1275 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301. You can request anonymity if you agree with comedian George Carlin that “a house is just a place to keep your stuff while you go out and get more stuff.”
On the Net
Durango’s Fall Cleanup: http://www.durangogov.org/index.aspx?nid=346
