Annika Cline/KJZZ

Crews pickup an array of items from furniture to palm fronds during their route.

Phoenix is unable to keep up with trash collection. The city’s solid waste division doesn’t have enough people to keep up with its scheduled bulk trash collection. Bulk trash includes items that are too big for garbage containers, things like furniture, appliances and tree and shrub clippings. 

Pickups are running behind in parts of south, east and central Phoenix, and the city has delayed collection for large chunks of north Phoenix. Updated schedules are on the city’s website at phoenix.gov/publicworks/bulktrash.  

Phoenix has hundreds of job openings and a compensation study is underway. Salaries citywide are expected to increase after the report is released early next year. 

In June, the City Council voted to make the Phoenix Police Department the highest-paid law enforcement agency in Arizona. Pay for police recruits and officers increased $20,000 annually. Sergeants’ pay increased $30,000; lieutenants close to $50,000.