CLEVELAND — Cleveland Slavic Village homeowner Jocelyn McCane reports she's dealing with daily health and safety concerns because her house is surrounded by seven vacant lots that are filled with high grass and weeds.
McCane told News 5 the City of Cleveland is responsible for mowing the lawns at the vacant lots, but this year she reports the city is behind in getting the job done.
McCane said the brush-filled lots are attracting bugs, rodents and wild animals, which are jeopardizing the safety of her two young grandchildren.
“It’s harder and harder to keep your sanity. I’ve got so many different kinds of bugs and mice and rats, I’ve never lived like that," McCane said. “I've called and called and it’s like a joke, but this is my life. I’m trying to show my grandkids how to be good citizens and how to be productive and what are you seeing here.”
McCane said she reported the vacant weed-filled lots to the City of Cleveland 3-1-1 system, the Cleveland Mayor's office and more, but she is still waiting for a response as pests attack her home.
“They are going in my house, they’re not coming in their house, they’re coming in my house, could you please just cut the yard," McCane said. “All I’m asking for is help. There’s nothing wrong to want this. Cut it, cut it, it could be a fire hazard too.”
Cleveland Ward 12 Councilwoman Rebecca Maurer agreed the city lawn-cutting program needs serious revision and improvement, and said the city is having difficulty in keeping up with cutting each of its more than 16,000 vacant lots every seven weeks.
“It takes them weeks just to cycle through all these lots with dozens of crews working around the clock," Maurer said. “I mean, the grass grows so high that kids can disappear into it, we know because we have horrible stories of safety issues, gun violence, drug use happening in these lots, and so the city has to take measures to get this system under control.”
Maurer said lawn cutting is such an issue she created the new pamphlet below to address the problem.
8.5x11-OneFold_ Mowing _V5-FINAL(1) 1 by Wews WebStaff on Scribd
She told News 5 she hopes to introduce mow-to-own legislation at city hall in the coming month. Maurer said the legislation would be similar to the program in use in the City of Akron, allowing homeowners to take possession of vacant lots in their neighborhood if they maintain the property for a number of years.
News 5 contacted Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb's office for this story, and it issued the following statement:
"We are using local contractors to bring the cycle down. We have an increase in inventory of lots to service. Weather, equipment, inventory, illegal dumping and staffing all impact the service delivery.
We are almost exactly on pace with where we were last year, with hopes to improve cycle time with local contractor assistance. The administration has set aside $1M for this pilot."
Councilwoman Maurer told News 5 she hosting a lawn-cutting public meeting on Wed. June 21, starting at 6 p.m. and the Polish-American Cultural Center at 6501 Lansing Avenue in Cleveland.
Meanwhile, Cleveland homeowners like McCane are wondering what impact the potentially hazardous vacant lots will have on their property values and neighborhood safety.
“Who in their right mind is going to invest in a neighborhood like this and get stuck here," McCane said. "Look, this is what you’re getting.”
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