STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The overflowing dumpsters that have long plagued the Park Hill Apartments could soon be a thing of the past, with the new owners of the eight-building apartment complex planning to implement a new system to help keep the property clean.
Earlier this month, the Advance/SILive.com obtained photos highlighting the squalid conditions surrounding the Park Hill Apartment’s garbage pick-up location.
The photos show all manners of trash strewn about the ground, from garbage bags to mattresses, couches, televisions, bicycles and more.
Trash is seen overflowing from the dumpsters and scattered about the ground at the Park Hill Apartments in January 2026. (Third-party-submitted)Third-party-submitted
The overwhelming buildup of trash has been a recurring issue at the location for years, with the Advance/SILive.com previously reporting on similar conditions in 2019 and 2021, and the Department of Sanitation having issued more than 200 cleanliness-related summonses to the property in 2025, alone.
However, for the residents of Park Hill, change is on the way.
The Advance/SILive.com recently sat down with Simon Bacchus, director of development for The Arker Companies, which will lead the new ownership group’s rehabilitation of the Park Hill Apartments.
Trash is seen overflowing from the dumpsters and scattered about the ground at the Park Hill Apartments in January 2026. (Third-party-submitted)Third-party-submitted
During the interview, Bacchus explained that the recent pileup earlier this month was the result of various factors, including inclement weather, transitioning to a new private carting company for bulk garbage and the fact that the holidays are typically the busiest garbage season of the year.
With the holidays passed and the new carting company in place, Bacchus said he does not anticipate that level of buildup to happen again.
He noted that managing garbage during large construction projects, like the planned two-year rehabilitation, can be challenging, but believes the company is prepared to handle it.
Trash is seen overflowing from the dumpsters and scattered about the ground at the Park Hill Apartments in January 2026. (Third-party-submitted)Third-party-submitted
“During construction it is also particularly difficult because we will be removing a lot of material from the buildings over the course of the next two years. But that being said, we feel like we are up to the task for sure for the construction,” said Bacchus.
In the longterm, the company will completely overhaul the existing garbage management system, building out new waste yards equipped with trash compactors and rollout containers that can be loaded directly into Department of Sanitation trucks.
“I feel confident that by the end of this two years, the waste system at Park Hill will be dramatically different from what it has been and in really a much, much better place,” Bacchus said.
Trash is seen overflowing from the dumpsters and scattered about the ground at the Park Hill Apartments in January 2026. (Third-party-submitted)Third-party-submitted