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East Toledo woman fed up with illegal dumping in neighborhood

An east Toledo woman said she’s fed up with the blight in her neighborhood. She claims people have dumped trash and other debris all along her street for years.

TOLEDO (WTOL) - If you're looking for a new couch, mattress or even some tires, Utah Street in east Toledo might be the best bet for you.

Some neighbors are deeply concerned about the dumping issue they've been having on their street.

An east Toledo woman said she’s fed up with the blight in her neighborhood. She claims people have dumped trash and other debris all along her street for years.

"I drive through in the morning and there's nothing there," DiDi Fitzgerald said. "I drive home in the evening and there's furniture, mattresses, tires."

And that's not even the craziest sight she's seen.

"There was a boat parked on a trailer, full of tires, literally a boat load of tires," she said. "I wanted to take a picture the next morning but by then someone had come along and taken it."

Trash and discarded furniture line the road. There aren’t any homes on that stretch of Utah Street, but Fitzgerald said it’s still unacceptable.

"It angers me quite frankly," Fitzgerald said. "It's ridiculous. Toledo has free large-item pick-up. There's no reason for the dumping."

City spokesman Ignazio Messina said they've considered closing that part of Utah Street altogether.

"We are investigating trying to find out who is doing that and like I said, we've used trail cameras, we've had police cameras in the area," Messina said. "We are doing everything we can and if we catch you, you're going to be prosecuted."

Messina said those trail cameras are intentionally hidden. Fitzgerald wants more comprehensive surveillance in her neighborhood.

“I would like to see some sort of camera system, surveillance system that could get the license plates of the people that are doing this,” she said. “Fine them the $500. Just a couple of people paying the fines would pay for a camera system.”

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