Profit collection bins are collecting fines for some business owners

AURORA, Colo. -- A phone call from shoes and clothes recycling company USAgain asking restaurant owner Silvia Desantiago if she could help her community seemed the right thing to do.

“We thought it was good for the community,” said Hacienda Camino Real owner, Silvia Destantiago.

Destantiago agreed to let them bring the bin and put it by her business.

“At the beginning it was just clothes and everything was just under control,” said Desantiago.

But then she said debris started popping up around the bin.

“It made the place look dirty because there was always boxes outside,” said Desantiago.

She also said she was the one picking up the debris and throwing it out despite calling the company that claims it responds within 24 hours. Desantiago finally called the company and had it remove the bin. “I was getting to the point were I was going to get a code violation,” said Desantiago.

As it turns out, Desantiago isn't alone when it comes to dealing with the pain of having collection bins nearby.  There are 19 collection bins currently run by four different profit companies. Four of the 19 bins are owned by Atlas Global, which is no longer in business, yet still attracting debris that businesses must clean.

Gayle Jetchick with the Havana Business Improvement District said the issue has been an ongoing struggle for businesses who seem to being paying for some of these company's overseas business.

“The business owners get the code complaint and code violation," said Jetchick.

The City of Aurora can’t intervene because the bins are on private property and if the city removes the bins, it could possibly be violating the companies’ constitutional rights. City officials plan to meet with business owners and discuss their rights on this ongoing issue.