Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/tag/trash/)
By Linda ScottWatertown Resident
The road to Hell is paved with good intentions. Perhaps you’ve heard that expression. I have some good new personal intentions … to get my blood pressure (bp) down. So I get up, breathe deeply, and take my bp. High, but lower than it was.
A Watertown trash bin. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
The City of Watertown’s emergency drop-off site for trash and recycling will also now accept yard waste. The trash strike that started July 1 continues, and the City has set up a drop-off site at the former Sterritt Lumber site, 148 Waltham St., for residents to use. The temporary facility is open Monday-Friday, from 7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. for Watertown residents. The City’s Trash Strike updates said: “Please limit your drop-off to 3 bags of household trash, the equivalent amount of recycling that would fit in your bins, and a maximum of three bags of yard waste.
Trash bins in Watertown. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
City Manager George Proakis spent more of his vacation than expected talking about trash, the strike, and how to deal with collection while Republic Services and Teamsters Local 25 negotiate a contract. The two sides met Tuesday, the 11th negotiating session, but did not come up with an agreement. In the meantime, Watertown and around a dozen other communities have been trying to make sure trash is collected. Proakis spoke to Watertown News at Tuesday’s grand opening of the renovated Arsenal Park, after returning from his time away from town.
(This letter was sent to Department of Public Works Director Tom Brady)
Hi Tom,
Thanks for following through and getting our garbage collected on Saturday! We were one of the first streets to be “struck” and then one of the last streets to be picked up. I have to tell you, it made a big difference in the quality of life around here! One of my very rugged neighbors, seeing me on my front porch after the garbage was collected, stopped, put his hands over his head in a ballet pose, turned his head to the left and sniffed, then to his right and sniffed. Then he did a happy dance.
Watertown DPWCurbside composting toters, like the one on the left, will be part of the Watertown trash and recycling program starting in August. On Monday, replacement crews during the trash strike continued to collect any missed pickups from last week, so Monday pickups may not all be collected on July 14. The City will keep the drop off area for trash and recycling open from Monday to Friday during the week of July 14, with a limit of three bags of trash or equivalent recycling. City officials also requested that residents wait 48 hours to report a missed pickup as crews try to catch up. See below the update from the City of Watertown regarding trash and recycling curbside pickup:
Republic Services is doing trash and recycling curbside pickup today, Monday, July 14, 2025, completing any final missed pickups reported from Thursday and Friday of last week.
A Watertown trash bin. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
As the trash strike impacting Watertown and more than a dozen communities nears a third week, the Massachusetts Secretary of State reached out to Republic Services urging an end to the strike. The company also issued a statement saying that the union “did not take negotiations seriously.” The trash strike began on July 1, 2025. Republic Services and Teamsters Local 25 met for more than nine hours on Friday, and are scheduled to return to negotiations on Tuesday.
Uncollected trash bins in Watertown on July 11 due to the trash strike that began July 1. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
The two sides met for several hours on Friday but failed to come to an agreement that would end the trash strike that began on July 1, 2025. Some communities impacted by the strike are seeking damages and have threatened to end the contract with the trash contractor. The negotiations between Republic Services and Teamsters Local 25 took place with the assistance of federal mediation. The two sides met for 9.5 hours, according to a statement from Teamsters Local 25, and negotiations will resume on Tuesday, July 15.
Overflowing trash and recycling bins on Main Street during the trash strike. (Photo by Dean Martino)
The two sides have not come to an agreement on the trash strike impacting Watertown and 11 other communities, and it appears they have not been at the negotiation table since last week. The City says replacement crews continue to pick up trash, and missed collections will be dealt with later in the day. On Wednesday, Teamsters Local 25 sent out a release saying that officials with Republic Services have not met with them. “Republic Services was told on Thursday, July 3, if they did not begin negotiations by Monday, July 7, we were prepared to extend picket lines across the country.