Litter causes a big stink in Westchester Square

Waste lining the streets near a Westchester Square school is raising a big stink in the community and it is not the first time.

Grass clippings, garbage, litter, and dog excrement have been repeatedly blown into the streets surrounding P.S. 12 after city maintenance workers finished cultivating tree pits near the school’s perimeter.

According to Lou Rocco, Westchester Square Civic Association president, this is nothing new and he has been trying to put a stop to this unsanitary practice by contacting Department of Sanitation and 311.

Rocco gave the Bronx Times Reporter a tour in front of the school last Friday, June 19, showing Benson Street and Frisby Avenue, on the school’s perimeter, had grass clipping, litter, papers, weedwhacker wires, and dog excrement laying next to the curb.

Cars parked in these locations had litter and dog excrement underneath their passenger side tires.

Throughout the tour’s entire duration, the debris remained undisturbed and was not collected for disposal.

“People go to work in the morning and they are greeted by all of this filth and flies,” he said. “The street sweepers do come through here to pick it up, but once their back compartment is full, it can end up spreading it to other neighborhoods.”

Chino Hogan, building supervisor for 1506 Overing Street, has been receiving tickets for P.S. 12’s grass clippings and trash which finds its way to his property.

“They got a new worker at the school earlier this year and he leaves all of this debris in the street. The old maintenance worker never did this,” Hogan said. “They should blow it into one pile and pick it up after they’re finished.”

“When you do this type of work, it is a 24/7 job,” Rocco explained. “The community is asking you to be a good neighbor and it’s their responsibility to clean up their mess, not ours. Why shouldn’t this neighborhood be clean and respected as it should?”

A spokesperson from the Bronx Department of Sanitation said this issue is currently being investigated by the department.

In addition to streets filled will litter, a mountain of garbage across from P.S. 12 was seen during Friday’s tour.

Garbage pickups for schools only occur on Wednesdays and Saturdays and with the summer heat soon approaching this has raised concerns.

Rocco has been closely monitoring the situation and explained the majority of garbage is removed, but a few bags remain until the next pickup date and more trash is added them.

He said a sanitation supervisor visited P.S. 12 on Monday, June 22 to speak with the school and explained sanitation enforcement is a possibility.

As P.S. 12’s fence does not have any signs telling people to clean after their dog, Rocco took matters into his own hands by making and hanging some near the tree pits, but they were torn down.

While P.S. 12 does its part to maintain the tree pits and garbage, cooperation among the community, school, and sanitation is needed to rectify the problem.