DETROIT – When the landlord of a home on Monica Street cleaned up the place to be rented he put items on the curb along with some construction bags full of trash.
The original pile of trash was a little less than half of what is shown in the image below, according to the landlord.
"As days went by I noticed there's more stuff out here. These couches, this mattress, these boxes, the shower enclosure, the doorjambs on the other side. They come at night and dump this stuff," the homeowner said.
The growing trash pile is growing old with those who live in the neighborhood.
"It's been there a couple of months. The neighbors are all complaining and we want somebody to do something to get that stuff up from there. It's attracting rats, raccoons and everything else. It just doesn't make sense for people to pass the buck, and no one wants to get it done," said neighbor Eric Burse.
After conferring with the city of Detroit, Local 4 was told the trash would be cleaned up on Tuesday and the city would waive the $600 ticket.
Neighbors think there is enough blame to go around for the city, the homeowner and illegal dumpers.
"Be careful what you do because my neighbors are all very focused. They will write your (license) plate down and get you ... we'll get it right," said Burse.
The city is using this case as a teaching moment for people to learn what is acceptable for pickup.
35284026