STATEN ISLAND — A week-long blitz on illegal dumping is being demanded as a way to clean up a chronically filthy stretch of Staten Island road.
Councilman Joe Borelli asked the Department of Sanitation to have a focused assault along Arthur Kill Road, between Veterans Road West and Huguenot Avenue.
"This area has been a serious problem for too long," said Borelli in a statement.
"Our interventions have fallen on deaf ears with the commercial and vacant property owners in this location and we cannot continue to allocate public resources to keep private property clean and presentable."
Under his plan, the city would give property owners a week long grace period to clean up their mess before the Sanitation Department starts its enforcement and hits them with fines.
"The Department of Sanitation has long worked to combat illegal dumping on Staten Island, and around the city," said Department of Sanitation spokeswoman Belinda Mager in a statement.
"Council Member Borelli did reach out to the Department and we met with him last week to tour parts of Staten Island and discuss his concerns. We look forward to working with him to fight this battle."
After a growing number of complaints of illegal dumping around the borough, the Sanitation Department started to crackdown last year. That push eventually led to an arrest, a vehicle being impounded and 100 truck tires being removed from the street.
Borelli said his "Clean Team," which targets trash at spots around his district, has been to the section of Arthur Kill Road numerous times but they don't have enough resources to continue.
