Photo: Suzanne Sausville/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Mayor Michelle Wu held a press conference on Friday to discuss college move-ins during Labor Day weekend and the preparations being made across city departments to make said move-ins as smooth as possible.
The mayor began the conference by doubling down on the city’s stance of being welcoming to all, even those from other countries.
“While there are some right now who are targeting and threatening international students and trying to insert their own agenda of fear and division, in Boston, we are a home for everyone,” Mayor Wu said.
She also reminded movers with taller vehicles to avoid Storrow Drive.
“If you are driving a truck, don’t get storrowed,” she said. “We want you to make sure you keep all of your stuff and do not need to get removed from under the bridge.”
Beyond these comments, the mayor and other speakers such as City Councilor Sharon Durkan, Superintendent of Waste Reduction Dennis Roache, and Assistant Commissioner of the Inspectional Services Department Jessica Thomas spoke about keeping the city clean and keeping students informed.
Mayor Wu spoke about how the city’s been working through curbside furniture cleanups.
“We’ve made it easier to dispose of your mattress with free, curbside pickup for mattress recycling,” she said. “This year we launched our furniture pick up pilot, so earlier in the week, our partners at Household Goods collected more than 50 pieces of furniture that will find new homes.”
Read More: Boston College Students Living Off-Campus Find Creative Ways To Move In
Boston 311 was a major talking point at the conference. The 24-hour service can be used to report non-emergency issues and find city information, and it can be accessed through calling 311, going to the Boston 311 website, or through the Boston 311 phone app.
“If you’re moving to Boston, download 311, one of the most fun things to do is report your neighbors for things they shouldn’t have done,” City Councilor Durkan said.
Superintendent Roache spoke about the importance of knowing when to put your trash out and keeping the city clean.
“It is very very important to know your trash day,” Roache said. “We have code enforcement out there all weekend and throughout the year, enforcing these rules and regulations about when trash is put out.”
Assistant Commissioner Thomas explained that the city’s Inspectional Services, Transportation, Office of Neighborhood Services, Fire, Police, and Public Works departments would be conducting housing and trash inspections and distributing informational brochures to student-dense neighborhoods.
A recording of the press conference can be found here and more information can be found here.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Suzanne Sausville (@WBZSausville) reports.