City trash commissioner placed on leave after complaints, reduced services

trash pickup
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The man in charge of trash pickup in the city of St. Louis has been placed on paid leave following a wave of citizen complaints. City trash commissioner Todd Waelterman has confirmed that he's off the job for now, but said he's not ready to make a public comment.

Waelterman took over the refuse division in May 2021. A couple months later, the city started throwing out recycling with the garbage. Then, this May, trash pickup was cut from twice to once a week. Many city residents complained about trash piling up in alleyways due to the reduction in services.

The city blamed a lack of mechanics and a worker shortage in general. Alderman Joe Vaccaro told the Post-Dispatch that city officials are using Waelterman as a scapegoat.

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