BALTIMORE — Illegal dumping remains a problem. It's not just alleys city leaders are paying attention to. A portion of Forest Park Golf Course is now on the city's radar after numerous complaints in District 8.
"The thing is, you don't always see them," said Elain Shaw.
Shaw is 88-year-old and lives near the golf course. She sees a lot of illegal dumping from her window.
"People dump things all the time," she said. "Tires, garbage, junk, you name it."
The latest problem is landscape and yardwork debris.
"There’s actually people doing yardwork for folks that are using the edge of the park to dump all the clippings and tree branches and downed logs," said Baltimore City Councilman Kristerfer Burnett. "This in and of itself is a problem."
It may look like part of the natural landscape but Burnett says it's not.
Debris including lawn bags stretches three blocks along California Boulevard starting at Milford Avenue. That's just outside Shaw's home.
"It's sad. The city comes and cleans and a week later somebody dumps something else out there," she said.
Councilman Burnett says he's been busy installing signs and community cameras in hotspots like those around Howard Park Avenue.
"This actually looks a lot better than it did," he said. "It's not the best but we're hoping these small things deter people."
Still, the city encourages people to report illegal dumping, including calling 311.
"If you can safely take a photo without being identified, take a photo that way we can we can hold them accountable," said Burnett.
As for the debris along California Avenue, Burnett is working to get things cleaned up.
