Omaha Neighbohoods trash

[Coyote]

'It needs to be addressed': Omaha neighborhood riddled with trash part of a bigger problem in the metro




Driving around Omaha, you can see trash along the highways, city streets and even in neighborhoods. The trash from all these places is ending up in some people's neighborhoods, like one on North 27th Street. Residents Vincent and Joann Guerrero said the trash gets blown into their yard by the wind from all these places. Another place is the alley behind their house, which is used for illegal dumping. The alley runs from Fort to Ellison streets. "It's disgusting," Joann said.

It also flies away from people's overflowing trash cans or gets dragged into people's yards by stray cats. Vincent finds himself picking up trash on his lawn every other day. He said he's called the mayor's hotline and the weeds and litter number for the city many times and said he never gets a straight answer about clean up. "Other than they're aware of the problem, and they'll try to get to it, but they're not too enthusiastic about it," Vincent said. The couple said they want to see the problem addressed. "It's like north Omaha, we have our reputation, but it's like, 'North Omaha has been basically forgotten about, and really who cares?' is what the impression is," Joann said.

Omaha Parks and Recreation is responsible for litter complaints. The department said the harsh reality is that clean-up is often left to homeowners when trash gets blown into their yards. OPR also said it has many complaints for the north Omaha area, but the alleyway didn't have an active complaint. After speaking with staff on the phone, the department opened a complaint and said they planned to send an inspector. However, staff said all they can do is give property owners notices to clean. The enforcement piece is up to the police. The Omaha Police Department said it did not know the alley was an illegal dumping site, but OPD plans to patrol the area more.