Unwanted Newspapers Prompts Lewisville Group To Form A "Trash List"

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LEWISVILLE (CBS11) - Piles of unwanted newspapers often stack up in Colonel Mason's front yard.

"It's absolute trash," said the Lewisville resident.

Mason, who uses a walker, has a tough time getting around so it's not always easy for him to go outside to pick up newspapers from his yard.

For years he said he has called the circulation department of various newspapers asking them to stop delivering.

"I tell them don't deliver here anymore," Mason said. "And sometimes the very next day there's another newspaper."

So Mason along with a handful of his neighbors formed a non-profit group called C.L.E.A.N. (Community of Lewisville Environmental Action Neighbors). They then went to city hall looking for a solution.

"If there was a solution, we would have used it," said James Kunke with the City of Lewisville. "We've actually done quite a bit of research over the past several months and look at how other cities has addressed this."

Kunke said what the city found is any ordinance restricting the delivery of newspapers would be ruled unconstitutional due to the newspapers' First Amendment right.

The City of Lewisville is considering a resolution asking newspapers to not deliver to residents who has asked them to stop, but a resolution is not legally enforceable.

This is why Mason and his neighbors have formed a "trash list" – an online posting of every advertiser they find in an unwanted newspaper.

"We are going to call every single one of the advertisers and tell them they're acting irresponsibility and tell them they've been trash listed," said Mason.

Mason said he hopes this will finally keep unwanted news away.

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