Many donation bins around Maricopa may be for a good cause but don't have city permits. City of Maricopa photo

By Ethan McSweeney

Maricopa is moving to remove unpermitted donation bins around the city after the owners of the bins failed to come into compliance with the city’s regulations.

“These bins have become a nuisance,” said Martin Scribner, director of development services for the city of Maricopa. “A lot of trash has been accumulating around them. One time I saw a box full of trophies by one.”

In order to set out a donation bin in Maricopa, a person needs to apply with the city and receive approval. Several donation bins did not have the proper permits to operate, so, last month, the city launched an effort to bring them up to standards, Scribner said.

He said city workers went around to the donation bins and tried contacting the numbers listed or the landowners where the bins were. On June 6, the city placed notices on the unpermitted bins, ordering them to be removed.

Some of the unpermitted bins were removed after the notice was given, Scribner said. As of Wednesday afternoon, about eight bins remained at three locations around Maricopa.

Scribner said the city would give the owners of the remaining bins until Monday to pick them up.

“We’re hoping that the rest of them will be removed,” Scribner said.

The process for getting a permit for a donation bin is fairly simple, Scribner said.

Someone who would want to set one out would go to the city to go through a screening process. That person would also need to provide contact information to place on the donation bin, receive permission from the landowner for where the bin would be placed and set the bin a certain distance from the road, Scribner said.

The application — essentially a zoning permit — would go through a review by the city, which would only take a couple of days, Scribner said.

The owners of the donation bins that have been removed can still go back to the city to apply to put their bins back out, he said.