Why doesn't the city make the residents trim their bushes and trees so that the trash truck and the employees can use the alleys safely? They have such a code for the streets. This would also protect our cars.

The City failed to consider negative impacts changing to curb trash pick up will have on Hampton Hills and other neighborhoods for over 30,000 homes. Please consider that: A). Changing from alley pick up will make this part of Hampton Hills (and others) unsightly. Just look and compare the areas of Hampton Hills with and without alley trash pick up to see the differences. Residential streets appear cluttered and be difficult to maneuver for traffic that day. This affects USPS and other deliveries plus resident and visitor access. Residential streets will definitely see an increase in litter caused by overturned trashcans. B). The City's proposal will not cure the garbage truck access issue. It will increase the difficulty of trucks navigating around parked cars, especially when many homeowners must park on the street since they have no space or garage available otherwise. C). Requiring over 30,000 homeowners change their habits presents huge challenges. Moving two trash cans to the front curb and back rather than leaving them in the alley is a huge effort and difficult habit to overcome especially for the physically-challenged and elderly. D). Over 30,000 homeowners paid a premium for their real estate based on alleyway garbage collection. Will the City compensate those homeowners for a decrease in market value? Will the Dallas County Tax Assessor et al reduce home appraisal values for affected homeowners? The City must prepare for potential legal claims over market value decreases. E). The City will be open and liable to suits for the failure to study and advise before making changes. In example, laws affecting residents who are protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Title II, Subtitle A of the ADA applies to: all services, programs, and activities of state and local governments.The General requirement is that State and local governments must provide people with disabilities an equal opportunity to benefit from all of their programs, services, and activities. The proposed changes will deprive over 30,000 citizens the benefit of alleyway trash services. Better solutions to the City's issues and reasons for change: 1). Gradually purchase more maneuverable and narrower collection trucks to improve conditions for staff and alleyways. Purchases can be made gradually as the budget allows for new trucks. 2). City Inspectors can increase alleyway vigilance. After 2 citations, the City can resolve the issue and place a lien against the homeowner if the required alley maintenance resolution remains unpaid after 3 months. 3). Offer current alleyway pickup homeowners continued alleyway service for a small fee. The proposed change is a step backward. The nicer and more convenient alleyway garbage collection is being taken away. Over 30,000 residents purchased and paid a premium for their homes with alleyway garbage pickup.

At the Dallas budget meeting last night District 13 City Council was represented along with Dallas sanitation director Clifton Gillespie. About 40 people objected to the plan in a separated meeting from the budget meeting in discussions with Clifton Gillespie and his team. It is apparent, they have made this plan, and they will not change it. They don't care about property values or aesthetics, and they presented no options other than a reevaluation of your alley to assure that it will fit their scheme of eliminating as much alley trash pickup as entirely possible.

Clifton Gillespie, director of Dallas sanitation, has made this unilateral decision despite polling suggesting that it's an unpopular decision. This cannot be allowed to stand. It's an eyesore and Dallas was built to leave garbage in the alley, not in our front yards.

Those of us who live in condos would have a problem putting the trash cans out front: we use large dumpsters, who would put out the trash cans and it is unsightly to see trash cans in the front of the condos and homes.

I’d be willing to pay more for alley pickup. For many of us, the alley is the only place we can store our cans—and we don’t have a path to the front. It’s also frustrating to see cans left out on the street for days.

I would not be opposed to paying more alley pick up. Many of us don’t have a place other than the alley to keep these cans and don’t have a bath to the front.

Here are phone numbers you can use to call and voice opposition. Especially since the sanitation department is trying to hide their number and only puts up the 311 number now. They usually don’t answer but you can leave a message. Sanitation Department (214) 670-3555 City Manager’s Office 214-670-3297

The Lake Highlands Advocate article has a quote from Gillespie at the end which caught my eye. "Gillespie also proposed a rate restructuring plan for alley versus curbside pickup. Residents with curbside service would see their monthly bill decrease 4.3% from $39.73 to $38.02, while those with alley pickup would see a 15% increase from $39.73 to $45.69. This measure would require approval by the city council." https://lakehighlands.advocatemag.com/2025/06/23/alley-trash-pick-up/ This seems like a very reasonable to maintain existing alley service and I was curious why it was not being presented to residents as an option to satisfy both parties. I emailed Council Member​ Gay Willis to find out more and was told "The issue is that some alleys present a danger to workers or their narrow pavement and lack of sufficient easement have created a greater propensity for property damage to city vehicles or residents’ property. It is not all about pavement width because there are utility poles and gas meters that contribute to these factors as well. So just raising the price does not solve those issues." This is confusing and runs contrary to what was written in the article. It also begs the question if the city actually took the time to asses each block to determine what sort of obstacles or obstructions are making remediation cost prohibitive. I'm not satisfied being told this is a citywide problem without knowing specifically what has changed in my alley and the cost to fix it. Finally, Council Member​ Willis said that because 65% of the city had curbside service it was hard to get support from other members. This is also disappointing as it defeats the purpose of electing someone to represent us in the first place.

Atmos also caused most of the issues in Old Lake Highlands where the trucks are driving off the pavement and creating ruts. Yes, the vegetation needs to be addressed. But where is Code Compliance? They pick low hanging fruit like people parked against the direction of traffic. Ending alley trash service amounts to a taking from the City. One of the many benefits of an alley utility corridor is aesthetics. Dallas loves the incremental property tax revenue from the new construction and valuation increases. In the end, we are paying more for less.

My alley was in better condition before Atmos Energy tore it up to replace gas supply lines and new meters. The Dallas City inspector either had no authority in the project, or else did a poor job of inspecting the work done and allowed shoddy work to get a pass. We were told alley trash pickup would be temporarily suspended during the Atmos work, which took a year to complete. Instead, after the work was finished the sanitation department informed us the alley pickup would be suspended entirely. I heard several excuses for this move - narrow width of alley, safety of workers, new trucks that were wider, etc. The alleys were adequately wide for decades, so what happened? If the width of the trucks was the real reason, then why didn't someone in the city with the authority to purchase the new trucks take alley width into consideration? If electrical lines were a problem, then why couldn't the City get them moved up? If worker safety was the issue, then why let them hang onto the sides of the truck instead of welding platforms and handles on the rear? I tend to think the real reason is an economic move to spend money that should be used wisely in providing essential basic services is, instead, being spent of "beautification" projects like the new walkways and park spaces along the eastern edge of Love Field, as one example. The disrepair of broken pavement along city streets is another basic that has gone on too long. Trash along the streets is just another way that our city is being degraded, in my opinion. Our City government has made awful decisions in wasteful spending like the purchase of an office building that couldn't be occupied even after renovation, for just one example. I wish we could DOGE Dallas.

The City of Dallas is preparing to eliminate alleyway trash collection for many neighborhoods—including mine in Midway Hollow—as part of a shift toward standardized curbside pickup. At first glance, this might seem like a simple operational change. But the truth is, it reflects a broader and deeply troubling trend: those who pay the most into the city are getting less and less in return. District 13 contributes over $30 billion in taxable value—among the highest in Dallas. Yet instead of seeing that reflected in better streets, alleyways, and services, we’re being told to accept reduced quality in basic city operations while our tax dollars are redistributed elsewhere. This isn’t just about sanitation. It’s about governance. And it’s about fairness. Sanitation fees—not property taxes—fund garbage collection. So the notion that southern districts have been “subsidizing” alley pickup doesn’t hold water. What’s actually happening is the redistribution of General Fund property tax dollars—money we pay—to fund capital improvements and city services in lower-contributing areas. The City's rationale for ending alley service boils down to “safety and efficiency.” But the standards they’re applying are overly conservative. Most alleys in neighborhoods like mine are fully paved, clear of obstructions, and have been serviced successfully for decades. The problem isn’t the alleys—it’s that City staff are pursuing a blanket solution with no regard for neighborhood layout or legacy infrastructure. And this decision wasn’t voted on by Council. It was made administratively—by unelected staff with no real accountability to the residents affected. That’s the structural issue. We’re governed by a city manager and department heads who are incentivized to hit cost and efficiency metrics—not to deliver constituent satisfaction. And that misalignment is now showing up in the form of lost services in the very neighborhoods that fund the city's operations. If Dallas truly wants to be equitable, then allow neighborhoods to opt in to continued alley service—at an adjusted fee—if a majority of residents on a block support it. That would honor both operational cost concerns and community preference. But right now, that option isn’t even on the table. We can’t let this happen quietly. The alley trash issue is just one example of a broader shift in how Dallas allocates resources and values its neighborhoods. We need a conversation—not just about garbage—but about the kind of city we want to be.

I submitted the form that Gay Willis shared with me to have our alleyway reevaluated. Unfortunately, the response I received from the city was both dismissive and tone-deaf. Here’s what they had to say: "Thank you for reaching out to share your concerns regarding how on-street parking may be impacting your sanitation collection. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Sanitation drivers are highly trained and experienced in navigating residential streets, including those with on-street parking. In most cases, they are able to safely maneuver around parked vehicles without issue." If sanitation drivers are “highly trained and experienced in navigating residential streets, including those with on-street parking,” then why can’t that same level of skill be applied to our well-maintained, paved alley? I measured the available width of the street when cars are parked on both sides—it’s just over 8 feet. That’s less than the width of our alley. So what, exactly, makes alley pickup more difficult than curbside? And if alley pickup is considered “unsafe,” then who’s liable for damage when trash trucks are forced to squeeze down narrow streets packed with parked cars? Is the city prepared to pay for that? This response reeks of a double standard—and offers zero meaningful justification. Why am I not surprised?

Together, we prevail. The momentum is great. We are looking for champions of each neighborhood to be a point person to effectively extend the outreach, please contact us and volunteer your name.