The City of Windsor wants to clean up downtown by keeping garbage where it belongs.
New lockable rollout garbage carts will be distributed to downtown businesses as part of a year-long pilot project.
The goal is to keep city streets clean, improve rodent control, and prevent scavenging and waste spills.
"It's a huge issue downtown, it's a huge issue," said Ward 3 Councillor Renaldo Agostino. "I don't want to point the finger at people who are suffering from mental health and addictions and poverty, it's not just that it's also wind, weather, overfilling the bins."
The new lockable carts are designed with technology that allows the garbage to be collected without the drivers needing a key.
Over the year-long pilot project around 125 bins will be distributed to businesses. The city's environmental services department will monitor the success of the program.
"In the long run, this could save us money because if I'm not having to pay people to go out there constantly cleaning the streets, cleaning the streets and cleaning the streets because the system is working because the garbage doesn't fly out and it's being collected. It's a better solution because then we can take those funds and put them into something else," said Agostino.
The project was launched with the help of the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association. It is being funded through the city's Strengthen the Core initiative.