Tires Turn Peoria Backyard into Dumping Ground
By: Maria Chandler WMBD/WYZZ TV
Updated: June 29, 2012
PEORIA- People in Peoria say their backyards are being used as a dumping ground.
Tonight, they tell us they're fed up with a big tire problem.
We took their concerns to the city to get answers.
Debra Fields has lived on Peoria's south side all of her life.
"It's where I was born and raised, and I don't wanna leave," she says.
But she and others say they're tired of their neighborhood getting treated like trash.
"They know they've done it, how you find 'em, I don't know, but how could their conscious sleep at night when you dumped stuff like this on other people's property? I'll never understand," asks Fields.
Tons of tires are being dumped and left the alley in the 2800 block behind Humboldt Street, but it's not only happening there.
"You go through all the alley's all over the south side of Peoria. You'll find tires like that," adds Kent Fields.
Leaving those who live here to suffer.
"Makes it look like trash," explains Jeremy McCrimmon. "I sit in the kitchen see them all the time. Coming out of the abandoned house. It's outta control."
"A lot of people are poor down here or really don't have the money or the know how to get things done. And I feel that people use this as a dumping ground because nobody feels that anybody cares about the south end," says Debra Fields.
They've made calls to the city, but want to know why nothing is being done.
"(The) city don't care, the business that's doing this don't care," says Kent.
Peoria's Code Enforcement says that's not the case. Interim Director Joe Dulin says his department received the complaint and is happy people are speaking up.
But the tires take a while to clean up.
Since the tires are dumped on a vacant property, a work order goes to the city.
Usually, it's cheaper for public works to pick up the problem instead of a private contractor.
And public works has five to ten days to do the job.
"You need to put more enforcement down here, demand people pick up garbage and not hang around," says Debra Fields.
Fields says the dumping doesn't all fall on the city, though.
Now, she's charging the community to come together and say "not in our neighborhood."
"I dunno, if the people get up down here and start speaking and maybe doing themselves better, maybe it will stop other people from thinking that you don't care and dumping down here."
Residents tell us the Health Department did come spray for mosquitoes until the tires can be removed.
But the piles just keep growing.
They think it's because it costs $5 per tire to get rid of them.
We counted 96 tires in the alley behind Humboldt.
Tonight, they tell us they're fed up with a big tire problem.
We took their concerns to the city to get answers.
Debra Fields has lived on Peoria's south side all of her life.
"It's where I was born and raised, and I don't wanna leave," she says.
But she and others say they're tired of their neighborhood getting treated like trash.
"They know they've done it, how you find 'em, I don't know, but how could their conscious sleep at night when you dumped stuff like this on other people's property? I'll never understand," asks Fields.
Tons of tires are being dumped and left the alley in the 2800 block behind Humboldt Street, but it's not only happening there.
"You go through all the alley's all over the south side of Peoria. You'll find tires like that," adds Kent Fields.
Leaving those who live here to suffer.
"Makes it look like trash," explains Jeremy McCrimmon. "I sit in the kitchen see them all the time. Coming out of the abandoned house. It's outta control."
"A lot of people are poor down here or really don't have the money or the know how to get things done. And I feel that people use this as a dumping ground because nobody feels that anybody cares about the south end," says Debra Fields.
They've made calls to the city, but want to know why nothing is being done.
"(The) city don't care, the business that's doing this don't care," says Kent.
Peoria's Code Enforcement says that's not the case. Interim Director Joe Dulin says his department received the complaint and is happy people are speaking up.
But the tires take a while to clean up.
Since the tires are dumped on a vacant property, a work order goes to the city.
Usually, it's cheaper for public works to pick up the problem instead of a private contractor.
And public works has five to ten days to do the job.
"You need to put more enforcement down here, demand people pick up garbage and not hang around," says Debra Fields.
Fields says the dumping doesn't all fall on the city, though.
Now, she's charging the community to come together and say "not in our neighborhood."
"I dunno, if the people get up down here and start speaking and maybe doing themselves better, maybe it will stop other people from thinking that you don't care and dumping down here."
Residents tell us the Health Department did come spray for mosquitoes until the tires can be removed.
But the piles just keep growing.
They think it's because it costs $5 per tire to get rid of them.
We counted 96 tires in the alley behind Humboldt.
Comments
It's happening in the West Bluff too. Especially the alleys but sometimes just along side the street.
John J.
June 30, 2012 at 6:37 am
