The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 108, No. 15 - April 11, 2019
Inside
This Issue
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.....................14
Classifieds............................4
Community Briefs...............2
Crossword/Sudoku.............4
Entertainment......................6
Legals....................... 11,12,13
Letters...................................3
Obituaries.............................2
Real Estate................7-10,16
Sports....................................5
Weekend
Forecast
New CERT Members Welcomed
El Segundo’s newest CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) members just wrapped up their training. The course consists of a new hybrid online didactic portion followed by one day of hands-on
manipulative training. Photo: ES Fire Department.
El Segundo Gears Up for New
Trash Collection Services in May
By Brian Simon
Change is inevitable and that’s especially
so in a rapidly evolving world. That goes
for El Segundo too, though the community
has shown historical resistance to veering
from what it had become accustomed to
over the past decades. Among the local socalled
sacred cows: We don’t have parking
meters in town. That policy continues to
remain in place for the time being. Another
one: There is no housing in El Segundo east
of Sepulveda (now known as Pacific Coast
Highway). That one is also still intact, but
corporate demand has prompted a conversation
on the matter in recent times. And
then there’s this: Residents here don’t pay
for trash collection. Well it appears we have
one cow down because starting next month,
this will no longer be the case. Owners of
one- and two-unit properties will for the
first time ever receive bills for solid waste
and recycling collection. The amount: $15
a month per single-family home and duplex
unit billed quarterly ($45 for three months).
Three- and four-unit properties will not fall
under the City service. Owners of those (as
well as larger complexes) must arrange for
their own collection. More on this later.
In addition to the charge, residents will
also see a new hauler –EDCO -- take over
collection duties beginning on May 1. Services
will become automated to replace the
previous unlimited manual curbside pick-ups.
To usher in the change, EDCO will deliver
free new bins to residences starting April
24. With that there will be a bit of an initial
learning curve for people to tweak the way
they put out their trash after 25 years with
the outgoing company, Republic Services.
While the RFP process requested bids for
both types of service, City staff felt automated
collection will be more efficient and cleaner
while also setting El Segundo up to comply
with both current and likely upcoming state
regulatory changes. In fact, El Segundo is the
only remaining city in Los Angeles County
still using manual curbside collection – at
least through the end of April. Only one
other municipality out of the 88 still utilizes
manual, but it’s not curbside.
The new 95-gallon bins (each the size
equivalent of three standard cans) will be colorcoated
to indicate what items may be placed
within. Grey carts will hold non-recyclable
household trash. The list of acceptable waste
includes soiled disposables plates or cups;
soiled food containers; soiled paper towels or
napkins; broken glass, ceramics of mirrors;
diapers; pet waste; vacuum bags; rubber or
garden hoses; and wire. Recyclables, green
waste, hazardous waste, electronics or batteries,
fluorescent lightbulbs, pharmaceuticals/
medical waste, and automobile parts may
not be placed in grey carts. Residents may
ask for one additional grey cart.
Blue carts will be used strictly for recyclable
items. That means household glass and
carton containers, shredded and mixed paper,
paperboard boxes, newspaper, Styrofoam,
cardboard, and beverage containers marked
with “CA Redemption Value” or “CA Cash
Refund. Also allowed: Any plastic containers,
lids and packaging with a recycling symbol
of #1-#7. Not okay: Plastic bags, newspaper
See Trash Collection, page 14
Police Hope License Plate Readers
Will Help Capture Criminals
By Brian Simon
The topic of installing automated license
plate readers at various intersections in
town to help identify potential criminal
vehicles spurred some recent attention in
these pages, with a letter to the Herald from
Councilmember Chris Pimentel expressing
his concern that the technology will promote
privacy invasion. A rebuttal followed the
next week from a local citizen feeling the
elected official may have over-exaggerated
the implications. In any case, the devices
are indeed coming and could be up and
running as soon as mid-summer.
El Segundo Police Lieutenant Ray Garcia,
who is the department point person
and resident expert on the license plate
readers, said the devices are not actually
new to the community. “We’ve had readers
for years mounted on our cars and on our
trailers,” he said. “We were among the
first cities in the South Bay to use them,
just as we were with body-worn cameras.”
The difference with the new readers
is that they will be strategically installed
at key intersections where they will be
mounted on the traffic signal mast arms.
From there, they will take photos of license
plates on the vehicles driving by.
“A lot of times when we have property
crimes, we only have partial plates,” Garcia
said. “The pictures the readers take will
get captured and matched with a list of
See License Plate Readers, page 11
Friday
Sunny/
Wind
70˚/57˚
Saturday
Mostly
Sunny
70˚/56˚
Sunday
AM Clouds/
PM Sun
68˚/56˚