By SHELLEY TERRY - sterry@starbeacon.com
Staff Writer
ASHTABULA TOWNSHIP —
Some people say their neighborhood has become a dumping ground. And what is more, they feel the city has ignored their complaints.
Some neighbors of Ohio Avenue Extension, just a stone’s throw from the new Ashtabula Lakeside Elementary School campus on Wade Avenue, are tired of illegal dumping and they asked newly elected City Manager Jim Timonere to take action.
The request came into City Hall after the latest dumping spree, when the culprits left bags and a plastic bin of garbage, containing baby clothes, toys, a giant teddy bear, plastic Easter eggs, a tarp and household garbage along the ditch of Ohio Avenue Extension.
“We received several calls; it’s a problem spot,” Timonere said. “We have one guy who routinely checks but it takes up a lot of time and resources.”
A handful of those calls came from Ashtabula Area City School District employees who want to keep the new school campus and its surrounding property litter free.
Willow Arms resident Joanne Matthews said she’s sick of it.
“Somebody threw baby clothes out there one day, and the next day, somebody else was out there scrounging through it,” she said. “It’s disgusting.”
The city manager reminded residents they will be fined $500 if caught dumping, and anyone who sees someone else dumping garbage should get the offender’s license plate number and call the police.
Timonere said he also has code enforcement on patrol now, looking for offenders.
