What Else Happens around Alliance?...

Here is a little Alliance campsite under the freeway just 1/2 a block from Alliance's facilities (what a great welcome to West Oakland for those coming from Emeryville). Alliance customers often times set up these camps all around our neighborhood. Not only is this blight but illegal and unhealthy activities are part of the package. Public urination, defection. Public drinking and intoxication. Drug use. Eventually the camp will move to a new location but tons of crap will be left behind. Other illegal dumpers will see the abandoned crap and figure it's OK to dump their stuff, too.

Another Alliance Customer Dumping a Stolen Recycling Bin...

Just 1/2 a block from Alliance, another customer transfers stolen recycling to a shopping cart borrowed from Alliance. Then the bin gets dumped. The bin won't get picked up by Alliance because it's not in front of their facility. And if you call Alliance they won't care. The bin will sit there for days, sometimes weeks. Other stuff will get dumped next to it or other stuff will dumped into it by other illegal dumpers.

This customer saw me taking his picture so pretend to roll the bin away...but I discovered it a little later moved just across the street. You can see Alliance (and one of their many trucks parked on our streets) in the background.

A Stolen Recycling Bin Gets Dumped Right in Front of Alliance...

Sometimes you'll see guys on bikes toting a recycling bin behind them. These are stolen recycling bins that Alliance customers drag to Alliance, sometimes right across from Alliance, sometimes around the corner from Alliance, then they empty the bottles and cans into bags, or they borrow a stolen shopping cart from Alliance, and leave the bin behind as they go to collect their money.

Sometimes (sometimes) Alliance will collect these bins...but for the most part they don't, especially if it's not in front of their facility. Every week, homeowners around Alliance (and up to a mile away) are having to call Waste Management for replacement bins...or to have a dumped bin removed from in front of their home.

What Does an Unattended Cart Mean?...

1) An Alliance customer is trespassing on someone's property to steal recycling.

2) An Alliance customer is urinating or defecating on someone's property.

3) An Alliance customer is hiding to do drugs.

4) An Alliance customer has abandoned their cart.

5) Any one or more of the above.

More Broken Promises...

So much for Alliance's promise to keep things clean around their facility. They closed for the day and this is what's left on our streets.

Another Bin Dumped by an Alliance Customer...

In the morning, this Alliance customer rolled a (stolen) recycling bin from who knows where to a corner across from Alliance and is now transferring the contents to bags which he will carry across the street to Alliance. Then the bin gets left of our streets. Alliance refuses to take responsibility for these abandoned bins. You can see these bins all over our neighborhood creating blight and attracting more items dumped by others.

Alliance claims they don't accept recycling in bins and subsequently are not responsible for the bins left on our streets.

A neighbor called Alliance about this bin but at the end of the day, Alliance closes shop and the bin is still left on our streets.

Alliance's Camper Caravans...

In addition to attracting the shopping cart crowd, Alliance Metals also attracts a group of RVs that used to park where City Slicker Farms is now growing food. Now they're parked around the corner from Alliance on 35th between Peralta and Adeline. These RVs are part of the Alliance community that hangs out in our neighborhood. They participate in the rampant drug and alcohol use. They also dump their trash and empty their toilets on our streets.

City Slicker Farms...

One sunny spot in the gloom that surrounds Alliance Metals is the addition of City Slicker Farms to the neighborhood. This triangle park was once the hangout for Alliance customers who would use the park as a place to congregate and drink, do drugs and urinate on the trees.

I encourage everyone to stop by the park now and check it out. See how City Slicker Farms does what it does (provide food to those in need) . Volunteer if you can. And help take back our neighborhood.