Gene Sparling has lived in Harlem for nearly 20 years, and admits he didn’t love the city’s on-street trash containers, known as Empire Bins, when they were first installed on his block last year. But he’s coming around. 

The Department of Sanitation says their purpose is to keep trash contained, and rodents out — and Sparling says it’s working. 

What You Need To Know

The Department of Sanitation says the 1,200 Empire Bins that have already been installed across the city have taken up about 600 car lengths, or approximately two cars per bin

Some drivers in the neighborhood don’t like the bins, saying they take up parking spots that were already hard to find

The Department of Sanitation says every district will have Empire Bins by 2031

“In my experience, the rat sightings have diminished enormously,” he said.

But some drivers in the neighborhood don’t like the bins, saying they take up parking spots that were already hard to find.

“I think it takes too much space [from] the cars,” resident Philippe Segura said. “We’re already struggling for parking space. The whole neighborhood here [has] no place to park.”

“It takes a fair bit longer, especially at night, because they’re often next to fire hydrants, so it takes up like four or five spots, often,” resident Lucian Avalon added.

The Department of Sanitation says the 1,200 Empire Bins that have already been installed across the city have taken up about 600 car lengths, or approximately two cars per bin.

They estimate that by 2031, when the entire city has them, that will mean a loss of 30,000 parking spots.

But Sanitation Commissioner Gregory Anderson pushed back against concerns about parking in an interview with NY1 on Wednesday.

“In general, in most neighborhoods we’re looking at less than 4 or 5% of parking spaces in each neighborhood,” Anderson said. “Even in Upper West, Upper East Side, you’re looking at maybe 6, 7% of parking spaces. On a whole, it’s not that many spaces.”

West Harlem and parts of Brooklyn, including Downtown Brooklyn, Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, already have the bins, and Empire Bins are heading to even more parts of the city soon. 

Medium- and high-density residential buildings in the following districts will receive Empire Bins by the end of 2027:

Brooklyn Community District 8 (Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, Weeksville)
Bronx Community District 2 (Hunts Point, Longwood)
Bronx Community District 5 (University Heights, Mount Hope, Morris Heights, Fordham Heights)
Manhattan Community District 2 (West Village, SoHo, Little Italy, Greenwich Village, Nolita)
Queens Community District 2 (Sunnyside, Hunters Point, Woodside)
Staten Island Community District 1 (North Shore)

Every building with 30 or more residential units will get one, but it’s optional for buildings with 10 to 30 units.

The Department of Sanitation says every district will have Empire Bins by 2031. 

“There’s a balancing act in living in a city,” Sparling said. “And the rats shouldn’t win.”