SPARbage and the troll living under the bridge

Has anyone seen the huge pile of trash behind the SPAR building? It was big last week when I took the picture above, this week it is even bigger. Tires, garbage bags, furniture and all manners of yard trash. Honestly though I am not too concerned about this pile O’ trash. I hear SRG is collecting trash from all around the historic district and storing behind the SPAR building until it can be disposed of. I have someone looking into the full story on this. I’m sure the SPAR council is all over it and the city will have the pile cleared in a matter of days.

What I’m more concerned about is the troll living under the Hogan’s Creek bridge at Broad and Hogan’s Creek. There is a disgusting amount of trash strewn from East to West beneath the North side of the bridge. I just put in a CARE request, or Citizen Active Response Effort request. I was hoping if you had a sec you could help out and do the same. Here’s what you do:

Go to: http://ecare.coj.net/AddRequest.aspx

1. Search by category: waste/trash
2. Choose Illegal dumping on C-R-O-W
3. Choose yes for is this at an intersection
4. Enter Broad Street N and 5th Street W
5. Enter your info
6. Press submit, you should receive a confirmation

In case you are interested, here’s how the CARE system works:

Customer enters a request or complaint (issue) online, and is provided with an issue number.
CARE system automatically routes the issue to the appropriate City division.
Division starts taking action(s) to resolve issue. The initial action may involve some behind-the-scenes tasks, but rest assured that your issue is being worked on.
Progress is reviewed internally.
Issue is resolved.
If requested, the customer will be notified upon issue completion or resolution.

tags: jacksonville, springfield, spar, hogans creek, 32206

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 24th, 2006 at 8:56 am and is filed under Activism, Springfield. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

clayton bixby

trash in Jacksonville, particularly in downtown Jacksonville is a tradition. I mean really, what would Jacksonville be without its trash. Its everywhere, every intersection, median, road, park its everywhere... I've come to think of Jacksonville not as the bold new city of the south or where florida begins, but trash city. So keep up the good work Jacksonville, the trash, the broken banners on the light poles, the vagrants and panhandlers, the crime and murder rate, the broken promises and failed developments...... to you I say "you're doing a heck of a job brownie".

PCollins

Adam B, I think you and I are on the same page.

I have no problem with my money going toward these services as long as the end result and overall plan is to help the homeless back into society. And part of that end result is that some of the numerous homeless shelters throughout the city close their doors for lack of clients.

Tax dollars for drug rehab I'm not so sure about, as their choice to start drugs is just that...their choice. And I'm pretty burned out with substance abusers who have entered my world in one way or another over the years.

Whereas any one of us (in the middle class anyway) is only 1-2 paychecks away from going out on the streets.

joeymarchy

The trash under the bridge has been cleaned up. Nice work city! First Coast News interviewed me about it. Check it out at 5:30 (10/25/06)

Adam B

honestly, i would expect tax dollars to pay for drug rehabilitation, job training, and temporary housing for the homeless and destitute. while it seems like a raw deal, it is necessary to do so if we want any chance to help people out. many cities, such as baltimore, have realized that it's cheaper to provide housing for chronically homeless people than to leave them on the streets, where they have no chance of turning things around and end up costing tax payers more because of medical bills and court costs.

Does work for food

http://www.goodwilljax.org/work.html

Or at least donate to those who put those resources to good use. Job Junction kicks ass

Grimly Fiendish

Adam,

1. Are you suggesting that when otherwise capable junkies get themselves addicted to drugs, it is totally acceptible that law-abiding taxpayers should be left to pick up the tab of their rehabilitation?

2. Mental health counseling -- I don't mind my tax dollars being spent to provide resources to those who don't have the means to provide for themselves so I agree with you here.

3. When I worked day labor for a season, I spent the money on housing, showers, and Smack Ramen instead of, well, smack. While the alternatives may be unattractive, they are there. It is much easier to beg for money, eat the free food and take the free clothes the suburban churches bring down then crash under a bridge and toss the crap I didn't want on the sidewalk below, though.

4. Job Training -- give a man a fish...blah, blah, blah. If the man ain't willing to fish, then what is the use in teaching him how to? Perhaps if people stopped giving money to panhandlers and the free homeless shelters, free food, and free clothing, disappeared and all that was available were either mental health resources or work-for-board housing we would see a return on a training investment.

Nobody has a problem with homeless people who are genuinely in a desparate place and trying to get back on their feet but the vagrants under the bridge have got to go.

PCollins

"Decent drug rehab services, mental health counciling, and job training"

Isn't that what River Regions, City Rescue, IM Sulzbacher, Trinity Rescue, Salvation Army, etc provide? With city funding?

And don't we all help to fund these places with our monthly donations?
And provide clothes on a regular basis?
And volunteer our time?
I am one of those guys who does all that, and at the same time I am extremely frustrated with the continued and increasing problem.

And besides, being homeless does not give you the license to throw crap on the ground.

I will agree, however, that we need to provide low income (or no income) housing...a bridge to making it from homelessness to productive member. Because you are correct...not having easy access to a shower or a place to permanently store your stuff would make a regular job difficult.

My astuteness comes from seeing the same faces and cleaning up the same places and hearing the same excuses.

Phil

Adam B

such astute comments, pcollins. when the city starts providing decent drug rehab services, mental health counciling, and job training, we'll talk. also, when places start hiring people who don't have reliable housing, access to a phone, shower, or new clothes, we'll talk.

PCollins

David Williams/ARK rocks. We met him when he helped us with the UrbanJax/Springfield litter patrol prior to the banner installation on 8th and Main.

RE: using prisoners...I would agree only if the prisoners were used to assist in removing the source of the litter. Just cleaning it up all the time is not a solution. The access to the sleeping nooks needs to be eliminated and people using them need to be reminded of the numerous shelters in the city (beds outnumber our hotel/motel beds), the opportunity to stay there for 7 nights at a time, and their obligation to get off their collective asses and become productive members of society, and not blood sucking leeches.

The only excuse for long-term chronic homelessness is mental illness, at which point the city needs to provide better assistance.

Phil

Christine Farley

The photo under the bridge is a little soul destroying, for me the sight of the silt in the creek is as bad as the garbage. The prison inmates periodically clean the streets, maybe we should contact whoever it is that supervises the program to get them to do under the bridges. If it could be put on a rotation that would be wonderful.
Where the creek passes under Liberty, along side those apartments is almost as bad. The stuff is thrown in the water. It is cleaned periodically, but the fisherman and bank sitter get there and it becomes just as bad again, mostly styrofoam. Maybe we should get the city to put garbage cans and post fine signs, there really is no need for the river to be so illtreated.

joeymarchy

Excellent Kathryn, thanks for the update. Also, I posted a message on the SPAR message board about the trash under the Hogans Creek bridge at Braod Street.

Kathryn

The trash behind the SPAR building is going to be hauled away by the City (as have previous piles) and is the result of the hard work by David Williams, of the ARK Lawn Service, and funded by SRG. This extra litter pickup was done to make Springfield shine for the Symphony Showhouse and has been discontinued.

The block captains are discussing options for trying to maintain some type of litter pickup on a regular basis in the litter "hot spot" areas.

Kathryn

Thanks Joey for getting the word out about the CARE system. The block captains turn in monthly reports to SPAR for all kinds of issues in each of our "zones" and also are trying to get more Springfield residents to use the system.

Could you also post your comments on the forum board? I don't know how to link things very well. Maybe someone will see it and turn something else in (in addition to the bridge issue).

Thanks.

fawn leibowitz

I totallly agree that that is a nasty bridge area, but, um, if you have no house, and someone tries to take away the patch of concrete you call a "bed", wouldn't you be a little pissed/resistant? But i would hope one would keep his bed/concrete area a little cleaner.

John

I submitted a request...

Issue Year: 2007 Issue Number: 5001031 ;)

Downtownparks

I have been fighting for lighting under those bridges for over a year and a half. I truly feel its a safety issue. The City and JEA refuse because they think it will just get smashed again.

I also agree about removing the bed sized flat areas, but dont want to see the fencing go back in. That was so ugly.

I will try to reinvigorate the effort again to get lighting, and anything else we can get.

PCollins

There needs to be a permanent solution to the crap under the bridge. SPAR Block Captains and volunteers clean it up periodically and then it gets trashed again. One night I took my dogs through there and told the guys sleeping up on the concrete "beds" that they wouldn't get hassled so much if they kept the place clean.

I don't think they took my advice.

Bright, tamper-free lighting; bright white paint underneath; iron spikes or some other means of preventing access to the concrete "beds"; trash cans placed and maintained near the entrance...that's what would make a difference.

Because there's only so many times you can clean up poo, styrofoam containers from the churches, quart bottles of piss, and soiled Fruit of the Looms...

Phil

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