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Residents urge city action on creek cleanup and parking enforcement during public comment
Summary
Two residents told the council about pollution and encampment debris at Raccoon Creek and unresolved parking and property-maintenance issues on Isabelle Road; the law director and police were asked to follow up.
During the council's public-comment period, Arnold Friend and Paul Brewer raised separate neighborhood concerns that drew council responses and follow-up commitments.
Arnold Friend said he and neighbors have repeatedly cleaned trash and tents from an area of Raccoon Creek near the railroad bridge and Wilson Street but that garbage keeps returning from the adjoining property he identified as belonging to 'Leeds.' He said he contacted the EPA, provided photos and received soil conservation guidance, and asked the city and the property owner to address the pollution entering the river.
"I'm just a simple guy, retiree, trying to make a clean area," Friend said, describing weekly clean-ups and concern that the debris is affecting drinking-water supplies. The law director told Friend she would follow up with property maintenance and asked him to meet her after the meeting.
Paul Brewer raised a separate complaint about enforcement of a 72-hour parking ordinance in the Northeast. He said vehicles and trailers with expired tags have been left at 215 Isabelle Road and that repeated calls to Newark Police and code enforcement have not resolved the problem.
Council members responded that vehicle and property complaints are complaint-driven and that property maintenance and code processes will be engaged. The mayor encouraged residents to register complaints and thanked the law director for pursuing the Leeds property issue.
Why it matters: The comments concern neighborhood health and safety (river pollution) and the equitable enforcement of parking and code rules. Council members committed to follow-up through property maintenance and police communication.
Next steps: The law director will follow up on the property-maintenance complaint; police said they will speak with the resident about the parking enforcement concerns.
