In observance of National Public Works Week, an open house will be held at the West Hartford Department of Public Works facility on Brixton Street on May 18, and there will also be an opportunity for the public to have documents shredded.

By Ronni Newton

National Public Works Week is held annually the third week of May, an in observance West Hartford’s Department of Public Works will hold an open house for the community. The event will take place on Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. until noon, at the facility on Brixton Street.

The open house, which will be held rain or shine, will have activities for family members of all ages. Children will have the opportunity to sit in the “big trucks” used for road construction and snow plowing, while adults will be able to have all of their recycling questions answered. There will also be information available about electric vehicles and plans to increase the number of charging stations in town.

There will also be free drawings for a yard waste barrel as well as for permits for bulky waste or metal waste pick-up.

Those attending the open house are asked to bring non-perishable items for donation to the West Hartford Food Pantry. The West Hartford Department of Public Works is joining 34 other communities throughout the state for a “Fill-A-Public Works Truck” campaign, filling trucks with food and household goods to support those in need.

Courtesy photo (we-ha.com file photo)

Paper Shredding

At the same time as the Public Works open house, the Town of West Hartford will also be holding a paper shredding event.

Residents can bring their confidential papers to the Department of Public Works Oakwood extension facility on Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. until noon – or when the truck is full – for safe and secure shredding, at no charge. The shredding event is open to residents only, not businesses, and IDs will be checked.

Residents are limited to two copy paper boxes or the equivalent (roughly 15-inches-by-12-inches-by-10-inches), but plastic bags are not acceptable. Only sensitive documents should be brought to this event (please separate junk mail, envelopes, and other non-sensitive papers for recycling curbside in the blue recycling barrel) in order to ensure capacity in the Infoshred truck for as many residents as possible to make use of this service.

“Paper collected by Infoshred is safely shredded on-site, then shredded again before being baled at Infoshred’s secure facility,” the town said in an announcement of the shredding event. ” All paper shredded and processed by Infoshred is recycled and turned into new materials like tissue paper, paper towels, and dental bibs, saving trees, protecting the environment, and keeping paper out of landfills.”

The address to access the paper shredding event is 17 Brixton Street, but the entrance is on Oakwood Avenue, just past the intersection with Brixton Street. Signage will be in place to direct drivers to the correct location.

There will also be a collection of non-perishables for the West Hartford Food Pantry at the paper shredding event.

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