Municipal arts program transforms recycling containers in Hampshire County town (2025)

Belchertown — Residents in Belchertown participated in a unique beautification project as residents joined artists to decorate large recycling containers at the town’s transfer station.

Elena Bradshaw, 11, was busy Monday evening applying red paint within the lines delineated by Melissa Pandina, one of the three muralists whose work was chosen to adorn the containers at the transfer station on Hamilton Street.

Local artists competed in the fall to have their designs approved for the containers, each holding 8,000 gallons of recyclables. The program’s aim: to “brighten the Transfer Station & Recycling Center experience with murals focused on the theme of reduce, recycle, reuse, and regenerate.”

The recycling containers will not stay in place. The three containers will be filled with recyclables and make the trip to Waste Management’s Springfield facility twice a month, said Linda Leduc, director of the Department of Public Works.

“Belchertown will be going down the (Mass.) Pike in full color,” she said. “Everything that comes here is transferred out which means the recycling pieces are simply new beginnings. It’s not a dump. We need to shift our whole paradigm of thinking.”

Belchertown recycles about 27 tons per month, or more than 324 tons per year, Leduc said.

Elena Bradshaw came out with her brother Sean, 6, and their father. “It’s fun,” she said. “My Nana (grandma) is the painter in the family.”

Jared Bradshaw heard about the project at a town meeting. “We decided we’d come down as a family and help out with the painting,” he said. “We’re having a blast and it’s a great cause.”

The artists selected are Caoin O’Durgy, a muralist, illustrator and teacher; Joshua Smith, a muralist and designer; and Melissa Pandina, a muralist, painter and illustrator.

Leduc said the containers adorned with murals may be the only such project in the Pioneer Valley.

As a collaboration between the Belchertown Department of Public Works, the Creative Economy Committee and the Clapp Memorial Library, the project is part of a town municipal arts program to weave the arts into the “fabric of our community,” according to the town website.

Belchertown resident Roxanne Venskowski said she usually comes for the “swap shop” at the transfer station.

“I just bring my trash with me.” When asked how many times a month. “I have to confess that I wait until I fill up my car, maybe twice a month, if even,” she said.

A community “Trash Gala” later this spring will dedicate the new murals and honor the artists and other participants.

Training and support came from Making it Public for Municipalities, a collaboration between the New England Foundation for the Arts and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, with funding from the Barr Foundation.

Nearly 100 residents participated in a community survey about their experiences at the transfer hub. The containers have images of rural and community life, animals, nature and recognizable historic landmarks in Belchertown.

“The project really shows how invested Belchertown residents are in the transfer station as a community hub and in the effort towards sustainability,” Leduc said. “Together, we are taking action to reduce, reuse, recycle and regenerate, and we’ll continue to work towards sustainability in partnership with users.”