By Gus Saltonstall
A new type of high-tech trash receptacle recently rolled into the neighborhood: Empire Bins.
Thousands of these bins are planned for the city, with a goal of eventually getting black trash bags off the sidewalks and streets. But the rollout is being done in phases, beginning last year with a pilot program spearheaded by City Councilmember Shaun Abreu, who represents West Harlem, Morningside Heights, and the Upper West Side, in Community Board District 9.
Last week, more Empire Bins debuted in more Upper Manhattan neighborhoods — including the Upper West Side, where Abreu had pushed to get the bins installed outside of some local schools. Among the locations of recent installations was West 104th Street, between Amsterdam and Columbus avenues, for use by the Bloomingdale School.
“Rats and trash are probably the most universally reviled problems in New York City, and for the first time, we’re taking real steps to do something about it,” Abreu told West Side Rag. “On the blocks where we’ve been testing the bins, rat complaints have dropped by 60 percent.”
Each Empire Bin can hold around four cubic yards of trash. The bins are locked and can be opened only by building staff and waste managers using access cards assigned to the bins.
It is not immediately clear which other Upper West Side schools could soon get the new Empire Bins parked near street curbs outside of their buildings.
During the next phase of the pilot program, which will officially begin on June 1, buildings in Community Board 9 with more than 31 units will be required to use Empire Bins for trash. Properties with 10 to 30 units are given the option to use the Empire Bins for their trash during the period, but are not required to.
You can learn more about the pilot program — HERE.
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The Trump Admin will force us to remove them.
TDS
WSGIAM
He loves rats!!
He is one! A ratfink.
Good! Almost the only accomplishment of the Adams administration–if they stick.
These are a horrible permanent eyesore. Rats at least go away during the day. Is there any way to appeal? Our neighborhood will soon look like one big dumpster lot if this rolls out as intended.
Disgusting and no one‘s going sell there apartment’s and real estate property values will depreciate big time to this eyesore that rats live under!
Ridiculous.
another real estate crash! First congestion pricing will make it crash, now a better garbage collection system! wow.
No tenant wants to face the garbage. In fact that is a dealbreaker for many people on the UWS.
Document that.
Then you’d better sell right now, before the containers are installed. Hurry!
Yes, because piles of smelly trash and rats really raise your market value. We live in a big city, these are used everywhere across the globe. Move to Connecticut if it is so bad.
Urbanists hate cars so much they would rather have these and ugly eyesore dining sheds with rats living below them.
Those who don’t live on the UWS don’t care if we have piles of trash on the sidewalk, they only care about parking spots
Far, far, far, better than mounds of haphazardly piled garbage bags split open (by both animals and people) with their smelly contents spreading all over the sidewalk. Regrettably, NYC has no network of side/back alleys as other municipalities do. This is a welcome improvement.
Highly disagree. Yes the mounds of trash bags are far from ideal, but the situation has improved dramatically since the city changed timing to put them out after dark. They’re gone by morning. We have to live with these awful dumpsters permanently. Think of the beautiful tree lined UWS blocks with flowers in every tree bed – now lined with dumpsters. It’s awful.
they appear to be placed in the street (curbed). they won’t interfere with flowers and trees, which are on sidewalks.
It’s astonishing how literally every civilized country/city in the world has adopted containers – not your trash-bags-on-the-sidewalks-forever idea.
How blind is everyone…
depends what time you get up in the morning. The trash on 104 is still out every morning when I walk my dog and the bag collection doesn’t address the contents that spill everywhere after the rats chew through the bags. Bring on more dumpsters!
omg ur so right thank u for ur comment. I miss the beautiful trash bags lying everywhere. they created little hiding places for the cute lil baby rats to jump out at my feet while i walked by. And the sweet smell of all the trash on my block… as a born & raised NYer, thats MY smell of nostalgia. How dare they take this from us! And replace it with clean, tidy bins! That dont smell?? And clean up the sidewalks?? Giving us extra space and less grime?? They look so boring!! Now where will the rats go!? Thats our city mascot theyre messing with!! I cant even recognize my city anymore
Agreed, I prefer piles of trash bags. If you take those away, where will the dead-eyed spinsters let their dogs relieve themselves?
I’m sorry—but this is the most insane reply I have ever read in the history of the internet.
“Rats at least go away during the day…” Seriously ?
I saw one scurry from the crib to the basement stairs of my building around 8:45 today.
Eyesore? Most likely, but this is a large city and it’s not just all about you.
What does it look like NOW?
No, they are not. If you travel to any country in Europe, these are everywhere and they by no means detract from the beauty if Berlin, Stockholm, Rome or any other city there. They are different from what we are used to here, but that doesn’t mean they are an eyesore.
This is not true. In european cities bins are used but they are *wheeled out* for pick up then wheeled away. They are not permanently installed on the street. These bins literally turn our streets into permanent dumpster alleys.
Taking parking away and a real eyesore!
Not to mention a Ice/snowstorm!!!!
Guarantee not to work!
Poor you losing your free parking. They work is all the other cities around the world.
A lot of anger
☮️No anger here… Some people just don’t understand how the world turns. Those are the ones who have to come back and start all over again..🙄
Excuse me…. I own two cars and they’re parked in the garage. I’m speaking on behalf of the people of New York City…..Don’t you be so selfish.
What works in other cities doesn’t mean it works in New York City ie: Restaurant Sheds, Bike lanes…etc
Free parking in a city where most people don’t own cars… etc.
TAKE CARE OF YOUR EARTH 🌏
Yes, they are prettier than the last version but there are twice as many which consumes twice as many parking spaces. The school staff used the previous version – sometimes, and still piled on the sidewalk when they didn’t want to open the lid. So these babies are locked, to prevent use by … the rats? If they are for garbage collection, why are we discriminating as to “whose garbage?” The mechanics look somewhat fragile, and all so that no school guy has to actually “lift” the lid to comply – let’s see how long they hold up. To install these on the entire block will pre-empt any parking space for residential, service and courier parking. I see my plumbing and electrical contractors needing to double their prices, ah – but who needs “services?” And, when the landlord needs to pass along the costs to tenants, they will be bashed by the politicians who instigated this plan.
Now that we are all required to put organic waste in a brown bin I feel like my garbage is 99% plastic wrap. What are the rats going after in the garbage?
Bank statements so they can steal your identity.
Don’t you use a shredder?!
Smart people do.
This whole garbage program is totally out of control. It’s not going to work, look at the recycling program, It’s a disaster!
🌏Happy Earth Day, ha!
Will these be on the streets 24/7 or only on trash collection days?
24/7/365 and does not move for alternate side parking.
I am wondering the same thing. How would these fit in a building’s basement or will they stay outside next to the building?
They stay outside in front of your building attracting rats to live under it and greeting you every morning with a big bad smell of rotted garbage in your face and everybody else’s buildings. Taking up parking space’s away from you and your friends on your block.
Can you imagine the smell on everybody’s block and you know what the tourists are gonna say and you know it is going to depreciate the value on your apartment.
I wonder what happens when your building catches on fire and the fire trucks can’t get close to your building to put the fire out because the dumpsters up and down lining the curb side.
What exactly is “high-tech” about these? That they lock?
Anything’s better than the rats.
For what it’s worth, I am amazed by the diversity of opinion expressed by readers of the WSR. I bet there are even WSR-readers here who don’t like Paul Rudd.
I love this! I would rather see this than cars parked on the street! Let’s take away car spaces and make room for this trash can so we don’t have mice. Park your car in a private garage. I park my Bentley in a private garage space. I support this! More of this through out the city! I love thjs
I support this! Cars don’t belong on our streets they belong in parking garages! I hope they instal make and make them big! All trash belongs hidden! Why do I have to see your car and the trash! Park your car in a garage!
There are garages closing on the UWS and the zoning does not have parking minimums on the UWS for new apartments. It is high time we buy land on the UWS through eminent domain to make as a parking garage.
Magahhhhhahaha I love this!
And now even MORE city streets are occupied, with something other than traffic. Plus these are hideous. Gosh, I miss the City I originally moved to.
Are you saying you like traffic? At least that’s honest I suppose. Personally I prefer less traffic and trash, but maybe that’s just me.
The Department of Sanitation was installing Empire Bins on 113th Street between Amsterdam and Broadway this morning (April 22, 2025).
If this is rolled out at scale, do we have any information about how many would be needed? At a modest level, the gain in cleanliness (and maybe efficiency of pickup?) is probably a win. If a big part of curb space is given over to these bins, that feels like a downgrade. Not sure where the tipping point is, Maybe if <15% of total curb space, it's a win? The photo of the end-to-end bins is pretty grim. (looks like 7 in a row). I agree with those who point out that these bins will be there full time, while the bags are only piled up now and then.
Want to solve the rat problem? No need for empire bins, just have landlords put out garbage the morning of and have the garbage trucks come by the same time windows as the street sweepers for alternate side.
Would it not be more ‘equitable’ to have an effin’ caravan of these monstrosities lined up outside the residences of our elected officials? Brewer’s townhouse? Rosenthal’s rent-controlled apartment? Wherever Abreu lives?
It would. Would it make your street cleaner?
I saw the new bins on 108 between Amsterdam and Broadway, one the the rattiest blocks in my area. Hope they help.
Love the idea of the bins- but covering most of the block with various bins along the curb requires that we all become able to pay $500+ for parking.
The zip car spaces, Columbia’s gas line projects and bins. A bit of warning would have been welcomed.
That seems like a lot of compost bins in the photo.
Do we know how airtight they are going to be?
Generally, compost is picked up once a week so they will potentially have compost stored there in 90 degree weather for almost 7 days?
From an aesthetic standpoint couldn’t they have an enclosure fence.
Bins like these have been on streets in most of Italy for decades. i guess they work well. Eyesore or no.
Often I find myself thinking about how many Boomers on the UWS have enjoyed some of the greatest benefits of our post-WWII commonwealth, along with their individual comfort and privilege, and how sad it is to see such people bitterly begrudging the future and other people the smallest changes. Truly, it’s a depressing spectacle for the inhabitants of an area that was 80% slums in the 1950s, so many of whom are ethnically from the groups then condemned to the slums by the old-school WASPs, to be talking like the ancien regime French aristocracy.
Is this: Ageism? Racism? Classism? Revisionism? Take your pick.
Hi Sarah,
Did you grow up on the UWS?
Also wondering about “dubbing” and “categorizing” and “labeling” folks?
Is there specific data relating to your commentary?
Sorry-the boomers came to this city around the 70’s when it resembled Dresden after the war. The UWS was filled with half burnt down buildings and empty lots of rubble block after block. There were fewer stores. Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues looked like the South Bronx in the 80’s-90’s. We on the UWS were a clear amalgam of ethnicities including many Blacks-not old-school WASPs!! With our activism, energy and determination we brought these neighborhoods back to a point where developers started to notice and build a few things here to later overbuild our communities. We worked for years through block associations, and community boards that were not full of lobbyists like they are today to fight a crack epidemic and high murder rates and robberies to much later enjoy the neighborhoods we invested in.. We even hired our own security guards to walk the blocks and lessen the crime which happened both day and night. I’m afraid there was not so much for years on way of “comfort and privilege.”
We have a stake in these communities and pay high taxes and as such are entitled to a say in how they look and function. That is not “bitterly begrudging” anything-it is a little thing called democracy which seems to be unpopular amongst those who have little tolerance for the people who live and have lived here. Perhaps it is you who begrudge us because you believe you are somehow more entitled and respond with insults when we have opinions that you don’t agree with and are very happy to disregard.
Actually seems to me there is often discussion about the privilege and comfort enjoyed by the millennial cohort.
The income inequality in that group is massive as it reflects the new paradigm of incredibly wealthy younger people made possible by tech etc
Those “incredibly wealthy younger people” are an extreme minority. There’s a lot of income inequality but it’s not because millennials are overwhelmingly rich. Remember that most millennials who went to college graduated at the time of the Great Recession.
I feel like we are living in an episode of Portlandia. This city continues to make the most absurd improvements and is so wasteful with our budget. I am always shocked when I remember the *annual* operating budget of NYC is *over* $100 BILLION dollars…where does it all go? The bins are a good idea in theory and yes we need to make greater efforts to address the rat problem, and yet, these monstrosities will take up more parking spaces (I know many of you think cars in the city are for the elite class, but so so many working class folks drive their cars into the city for work etc). Once again, another good in theory, but poor in execution solution. Like the restaurant sheds, let the countdown begin until the first driver rams into one of these things!
I’m sure they are very good at reducing the rat population but they sure are ugly.
You think they’re ugly now? Just wait for when they all start getting tagged with graffiti. Then they will look like little 1970s subway cars parked along the street. Now THAT will be hideous. (Bet the city sanitation planners failed to consider that.)
Why are they set so far apart? Stop wasting space.
I grew up on 99th St. between Broadway and Amsterdam. Family had a candy store on Broadway between 98th and 99th. So glad I don’t live in NYC anymore. So much drama.