Albany residents think the city should help clean up its act

Posted at: 08/26/2012 11:31 PM
By: by Mark Mulholland

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ALBANY - Washington Park has seen better days. A dumped port-a-john is just one of the remnants of a day-long Latin festival held here Saturday.

Neighbors to the park says it's typical for trash to be scattered around after festivals.

Rona Wilson says, "Some times they can't find a trash basket nearby and they can't think to hold it until they find a trash basket."

There's no shortage of trash baskets in Washington Park, but there's also no shortage of trash on the ground.

Earl Belcher, the Vice President of the Park South Neighborhood Association puts it best when he says, "I just want the park to stay clean for everybody to enjoy."

Earl Belcher and representatives of other neighborhood associations volunteer to clean up the park every Sunday morning to make sure it looks good when people visit. The volunteers are supposed to be working along side city workers. Belcher says today was the worst he's ever seen and he charges the city only helped out because cameras showed up.

"The only reason they cleaned up was they knew I made a call." Belcher accuses Department of General Services workers of ignoring the trash and driving by instead of picking it up. "And we don't mind helping out, but it gets frustrating when we see DGS workers drive by in carts."

NewsChannel 13 tried to reach the Mayor and the Commissioner of General Services Sunday.

A Deputy Chief Labor Supervisor who came to the park says his crews are short-handed; "We're just doing the best we can to clean it up. We really got bombed last night."

Of course, the city workers and the volunteers who help can't make people use the trash baskets.

Rona Wilson just wants everyone to pitch in.

"The Park belongs to everyone, but let's keep it neat and clean."