All Tired Out – The town solid waste/recycling coordinator has a new plan for accepting and restoring old tires at the CHaRM Center

By Mark E. Vogler

Solid Waste/Recycling Coordinator Scott A. Brazis didn’t like the messy pile of worn-out tires that had grown on the ground at the Saugus CHaRM Center last month when a rack that was meant to store them until disposal had reached its capacity. “When I came in to begin the job [Oct. 31, 2022] in December 2022, I inherited a pile of tires,” Brazis recalled of his early days of work at the CHaRM Center, which is short for the town’s Center for Hard to Recycle Materials.

“We got rid of those in December of 2023,” Brazis said.

A town employee crafted a rack out of recycled wooden pallets and two by fours to hold the discarded tires in a neat formation until they could be hauled off, Brazis said. But the pile of tires dropped off at the CHaRM facility grew to 286 before Brazis decided to have them removed on Oct. 1.

“We didn’t have that many tires last year. This was a big load and I guess the place was getting tired,” Brazis quipped.

Brazis added that the situation reflected the slogan that he had printed on the t-shirts of town employees who work around trash and recycling materials in the CHaRM Center behind the Department of Public Works Building at 515 Main St. “Trash never sleeps – that’s our slogan,” Brazis said.

“We only had one rack there. No way one rack is going to hold 286 tires. The rack got filled and the tires kept coming,” he said.

This week, Brazis laid out a plan he hopes will allow for neat storage of old tires at the center for years to come. He’s asked for the construction of five more tire racks, which he hopes a town employee will build in the near future so they will be ready by next spring when the CHaRM Center reopens in April.

The final date the CHaRM Center will be open for the season is Dec. 14. However, the facility will be open the following winter dates, weather permitting: during the third Saturday of the month for the first quarter of next year: Jan.18, 2025, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Feb.15, 2025, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and March 15, 2025, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“Hopefully, once we get the new racks built, we’ll be good for a few years to come,” Brazis said.

“This latest addition to the CHaRM Center is to make the place more efficient, a lot neater and professional-looking for the people of the town who use the center,” he said.

The town charges residents $3 apiece to dispose of old tires at the CHaRM Center. At the time they bring the tires, they must pay with a check made out to “The Town of Saugus.” No rims are allowed. Only tires for passenger vehicles and pickup trucks will be allowed. No big truck tires will be accepted.

The Town of Saugus reminds residents that the CHaRM Center is open Wednesday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Residents will be required to buy a $25 Sticker to use the compost facilities as well as to recycle hard plastics. The rest of the facility’s features are free to use for any Saugus resident. Residents are allowed to recycle three TVs or computers/CRT monitors for free per household each year. The Town of Saugus reserves the right to refuse any material if quantity or quality is questionable.

Please contact Solid Waste/Recycling Coordinator Scott A. Brazis at 781-231-4036 with any questions.