7/13/2009

Bushwacking on the Main South Sidewalks





For the uninitiated, these pictures of of the sidewalk on Walpole St in the Main South area of Worcester, MA. Walpole Street is an elevated street that runs parallel to the CSX train lines about 1 mile from Worcester Intermodal Terminal. Since it is an elevated roadway on side of the street is 30 feet or so above the three deckers behind it and the other sidewalk directly abuts the CSX lines.

Who is responsible to keep these sidewalks free of weeds that can be measured in yardsticks? The City of Worcester? CSX because they are an abutter? Certainly not the three decks that back up to it.

On Sunday afternoon I got geared up and thought a good pair of gloves would be enough to pull the weeds in a pretty timely fashion. However these prehistoric thistles and some other urban weeds were so thick and full of vigor I was no match. All I could do was sort of twist them up but the roots wouldn't budge on many of them. Those weeds need some serious industrial strength put to them to be toppled.

This street gets plenty of foot traffic to as people who live by the park cut over to Randall's Package Store the pizza place or convenience store. It is obvious that things like this get taken care of in other parts of the city, but certainly not in Main South, even though there are more people without transportation in this zip code than maybe any other in the city.

I will admit the city has been decent about acknowledging, but not necessarily acting upon requests I have submitted thru their online system.

On the bright side the University Park basketball court is painted and looks better than ever. Perhaps the DPW can come one block over and take care of these monster weeds.

9 comments:

Jahn said...

The city passed a nuisance ordinance in 2008 that says property owners cannot allow their yard vegetation to be more than 12" high. HOWEVER the city exempted themselves from the ordinance.

Dittos for the new snowshoveling ordinance passed last December.

It's fucking joke even watching these city council fools and their motis operandi.

4rilla said...

Just put thru a complaint on the city website... They certainly bury the link deep enough. Bet the average Worcesterite couldn't find it.

Had to click
City Departments--->
Public Works and Parks----->
Keep Worcester Clean---->
Graffiti and Litter Complaint Form------>
Overgrowth

We shall see if anyone shows or I get any response...

Paulie's Point of View said...

Chandler Street Business Association summer youth employment program has been tackling this issue...last week the kid's cleaned Chandler Street from Park to Bellevue, Dewey from Chandler to Pleasant Street, Austin from Dewey to Mason and half of Winfield Street....it wouldn't hurt to have some folks who live around this shite help..but it aint gonna happen..to many in this Shitty:>)...just aint got mit in em' to do much

Jahn said...

Paulie is Worc Common Ground a memember of Chandler St. bizz group and is their Mason St site still overgrown with 6 foot steroid induced weeds (of the legal variety)

Paulie's Point of View said...

WCG is and the youth group is tackling the front of that lot this week...not much we can do about the lot itself..WCG has immunity from what the city expects of the rest of us I guess

Anonymous said...

I was always told that maintaining the grass and such around the sidewalk was my responsibility as a homeowner. I don't know if its actually true but its not a big deal.

Sprout said...

You have my heartfelt sympathy. I know right where this, no homeowners adjacent, right? As if it mattered...

4rilla said...

The train tracks are adjacent on one side so the property is owned by CSX or CSX and some government entity.

The sidewalk on the other side abuts a row of 3 deckers that sit 20 feet down because the bridge is built into their back yards. Certainly they are not supposed to walk around the block and clear this area that was built into the back of their property...

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