JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — UPDATE, 6/18/2021: Less than 24 hours after Action News Jax’s Dani Bozzini was in the Windergate neighborhood, neighbors sent her a photo showing all the trash has been picked up.
Original story from 6/17/2021 below:
A neighbor’s front yard in Mandarin is covered in trash.
David Mednick, who lives in the Windergate neighborhood, exclaims, “It’s disgusting.”
He says he and his neighbors have had to look at the pile of trash for well over a month now.
And neighbors say it was three times the size it was Thursday when Action News Jax sent a team out to check it out.
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It’s not just an eye sore, it stinks too.
“The kids can’t come outside, they don’t want to come outside. It smells. I can smell it in my backyard and it’s 40-50 feet away.”
Mednick says someone was evicted from the townhome back in April. A week or so later someone came in and threw everything from inside out in the yard and nothing has been done since.
We did some digging and found the owner lives in Canada, according to the city’s records. We tried reaching him with no luck.
Mednick says, “I just want accountability, it’s just gross.”
He posted an urban blight complaint with the city Thursday morning. The website shows the complaint was sent to the waste management division. But it also says: “Due to operational changes by waste haulers and contractors in response to COVID-19, residents may experience a delay in service. We appreciate your patience as we work on your request.”
We emailed Councilman Michael Boylan, who represents District 6 Thursday night, to try and get a resolution.
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He emailed back saying in part:
“For some months now my office has been serving as an intermediary between countless constituents, WastePro and the City’s Solid Waste Management regarding extensive delays, particularly as as it relates to yard and bulk waste. While I am not surprised about the situation on Windergate Drive, as there have been many other such issues in our District, this is the first I have heard of it. My Associate has already brought it to the attention of the GM at WastePro. In fairness they have been pretty good about getting such issues resolved within 24 to 48 hours.
As to the situation overall, just this morning I responded to a frustrated constituent with the following message:
“Believe me no one is more frustrated about all this than my Associate and me. For the past three months we have been in constant contact with Waste Pro management, and by that I mean multiple times a day, seven days a week, reporting on missed streets, neighborhoods and aging piles of yard waste. (I live off Brady Road and have called their GM multiple times as I drive by those aging piles.) My “Enough is Enough” email to both Waste Pro and the Administration a month ago resulted in no less than 35 trucks and crews scouring Mandarin two Saturdays ago. Our recent experience, based upon the decline in complaints, is that things are getting better but admittedly not where it should be as yet.”
I then forwarded his email to all the parties concerned just to remind them of the importance of addressing our responsibility in providing this basic service.
Mednick hopes something will be done so this doesn’t happen again. “I would like to see him get fined by the city, be forced to either come get it or pay somebody to come get it.”
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