Pinpoint aids first responders with face shields

WEST HAVEN, April 13, 2020 — (Pictured): Pinpoint managing partner T.J. Andrews, front left, presents city and fire officials Thursday with a boxed donation of 75 clear plastic face shields — 25 for each of West Haven’s three fire departments — to help protect firefighters on the front lines of the war on COVID-19.

Receiving and wearing the shields are, from back left, West Haven Fire Department Chief James P. O’Brien, Mayor Nancy R. Rossi, acting City of West Haven Fire Department Allingtown Chief Michael T. Esposito, West Shore Fire Department Chief Stephen Scafariello and Lou Esposito, Rossi’s executive assistant.

Andrews and managing partner Steve Gentile also donated 25 protective shields to the city’s Police Department and thousands more recently to area hospitals and first responders in Ansonia, Wallingford and West Hartford.

Pinpoint and its 23 full-time employees have responded to the shortage of personal protective equipment by manufacturing the adjustable shields at the marketing company’s 45 Railroad Ave. headquarters and hopes to produce up to 50,000 a week amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The face shields can extend the lifespan of face masks crucial for protecting first responders and medical workers as they treat COVID-19 patients.

Andrews said Pinpoint, which normally produces promotional signage and display products for such clients as the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars, is donating 15% of all face shields it produces to hospitals, municipalities and health care professionals.

The company is also making hand sanitizer, of which it will produce an additional 10% of sanitizer for each order placed and donate those bottles to hospitals, municipalities and health care professionals, Andrews said.

Pinpoint and other West Haven businesses have mobilized to build face shields and medical gowns to help protect people from the new coronavirus.

In late 2018, Andrews and Gentile, who is also the company’s strategy director, relocated Pinpoint’s Stratford headquarters to its new home in West Haven, a remodeled, 25,000-square-foot warehouse across the street from the Metro-North Railroad commuter station in the city’s burgeoning Transit-Oriented Development District.

The full-service marketing company, founded by Gentile in Milford 13 years ago, specializes in creative design, large-format printing, direct mail, imprinted promotional products and brand development.

Other Pinpoint clients include Live Nation, Comcast Corp., Yale University and iHeartMedia Inc.

(City Photo)

Sign of the times

WEST HAVEN, April 7, 2020 — (Pictured, from left): In these unprecedented times, a symbol of love and hope is assembled on the northeast corner of the Green on Tuesday by Department of Park Maintenance employees Terrence Tucker, Jim Simeone, Dustin Werle, Shawn Doody, Chris Provost and Paul Blakeslee.

The heart-shaped sign, “West Haven: The City With a Heart,” is normally on display for Valentine’s Day but was set up at the direction of Mayor Nancy R. Rossi and Public Works Commissioner Tom J. McCarthy to show community unity during the coronavirus pandemic. The red sign is scripted in white letters and bordered by red lights.

(City Photo/Michael P. Walsh)

Rossi thanks local company for making medical gowns

WEST HAVEN, April 7, 2020 — (Pictured): During a tour of Thermaxx Jackets in Allingtown on Wednesday, Mayor Nancy R. Rossi thanks the company, which normally makes insulation for construction projects, for making disposable medical gowns for workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

After nearly shuttering due to COVID-19, Thermaxx recently started producing the high-demand gowns — up to 800 a day — for medical personnel at dozens of organizations for free.

The company, aided by an arsenal of 75 employees, makes top-quality removable insulation blankets for pipes, valves and heavy equipment at its headquarters and manufacturing facility at 14 Farwell St.

Thermaxx’s jackets and covers insulate and protect pipes, valves and machinery in all types of environments, dramatically reducing energy costs, according to its co-owner and president, Brian Bannon, who co-founded the company more than 25 years ago.

(City Photo/Lou Esposito)

Bulk pickup is April 20-24; e-waste drop-off is April 25

WEST HAVEN, April 2, 2020 — The next pickup week for bulk trash is April 20-24.

Residents are reminded to separate metals, recyclables and regular trash from bulk trash and put them out no more than 24 hours before pickup. Violations carry a $100 fine per daily offense, Public Works Commissioner Tom J. McCarthy said.

Residents are also reminded to “Put a Lid on It!” and use lids on all trash cans. Rain-soaked trash costs West Haven 10 times more at the dump, said McCarthy, adding that using trash can lids will save the city money by reducing the weight of trash and cost of tipping fees.

Bulk items include couches, chairs, tables, carpeting, padding, fencing and small amounts of bundled lumber, which may not exceed 6 feet in length. No building materials, tires, mattresses, propane tanks or hazardous waste are accepted.

Options for disposing of building materials include renting a dumpster or bringing the materials to a disposal facility for a fee.

Tires can be brought to Town Fair Tire, 63 Boston Post Road, Orange, for a fee of $2.75 per tire.

Hazardous waste can be dropped off for free at HazWaste Central, 90 Sargent Drive, New Haven. HazWaste is open Saturday mornings from mid-May through October.

Propane tanks can be brought to Taylor Rental, 304 Boston Post Road, Orange, for a fee of $10 per tank.

In response to coronavirus concerns, the city has suspended mattress drop-off until further notice.

The amount of bulk trash per collection is limited to 6 cubic yards, which is equal to a pile of trash about 6 feet long, 6 feet wide and 4 ½ feet high.

Homeowners are required to rent a dumpster or hire a junk removal service at their expense if trash exceeds 6 cubic yards. Otherwise, trash exceeding 6 cubic yards will be left at the curb, and a $100 fine per daily offense will be imposed, McCarthy said.

To prevent a potential fine, property owners should familiarize themselves with the city’s trash guidelines at Public Works.

Bulk trash must be generated by the customer at the residential unit where it is collected. Trash will not be collected if it is generated by anyone other than the resident of the home.

Bulk items must be separated and orderly. Do not place them next to a mailbox or utility pole or close to a fence, McCarthy said.

Also, do not place bulk items in front of a vacant lot or home — they will not be collected, he said.

Details at Bulk Trash Pickup.

In addition to bulk trash, the city picks up metals, including household appliances, also known as white goods, and toilets. To schedule a pickup on their curbside collection day, residents must call the Highway Department at 203-937-3644 or 203-937-3585. Appliance doors must be removed.

Leaf bags are picked up until June 1 and from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, and grass bags are picked up from May 18 to Nov. 20. The bags are picked up on residents’ weekly collection days. Leaves and grass clippings must be in separate biodegradable paper bags and will not be accepted if they are in plastic bags.

In response to COVID-19 concerns, the city has also suspended brush pickup and closed the compost site until further notice.

For electronic items, including TVs, the next drop-off day for e-waste is April 25.

Residents can drop off electronic recyclables — typically anything that contains a circuit board or needs a battery — from 8 a.m.-noon at the city’s highway maintenance garage, 1 Collis St.

The city is partnering with Take 2 Inc. of Waterbury, a state-approved recycler and collector of universal e-waste devices, to collect residential electronic items on a quarterly basis.

The collection is free for residents who have such items as computers, monitors, printers, keyboards, modems, computer mice, tablet computers, TVs, VCRs, DVD players, photocopiers, fax machines, scanners, video game machines, digital media players, personal digital assistants, stereo equipment, telephones, cellphones, cameras, microwaves and other small appliances.

Anything that has refrigerant, including air conditioners and dehumidifiers, is not accepted. Those items are considered white goods, and residents are asked to schedule a pickup on their curbside collection day by calling the Highway Department.

Details at E-waste Drop-off.

For the e-waste drop-off, residents are asked to heed the following guidelines:

• Stay in your vehicle.
  
  
• Vehicles will be spaced out. Event workers will remove electronics from your vehicle. There should be no interaction between residents and workers.
  
  
• No mattresses or box springs will be disposed of at the moment.
  
  
• No smoke detectors, ballasts or hazardous waste — lighter fluid, liquids, paint — will be accepted.
  
  
• Electronic items left curbside will be tagged with information on the e-waste schedule and must be removed, or face a potential fine.

For the latest news and information, subscribe to the city’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CityofWestHaven.

DPW commissioner thanks US Foods for helping church

WEST HAVEN, March 30, 2020 — Public Works Commissioner Tom J. McCarthy has issued a statement thanking US Foods for helping Vertical Church, 225 Meloy Road, to feed those in need.

“I would like to extend an enormous thank-you to US Foods and company representative Josh Smith for their recent act of generosity to use a refrigerated truck in these unprecedented times,” McCarthy said. “The refrigerated equipment has allowed Vertical Church to expand its food offerings for those in need to include perishable items — eggs, milk, frozen meats — and fresh fruits, in addition to the nonperishable items the church has been offering.

“My thanks also go to Mayor Nancy R. Rossi and Councilman Robert Bruneau, D-9, for their leadership to ensure this humanitarian action took place.”

#WESTIESSTRONG