As I said before, the city itself is dominated by the ghetto class who don't give AF, and city officials comprise of people who pander too much to them.

I have a strong belief that litter isn't good for the psyche. I could be wrong.

Good point

It boils down to incentives. Either social or regulatory. It’s that simple. I lived a few years in Singapore where littering carried heavy fines as well as serious social sanction. Littering was non existent even in the low end public housing complex I lived in. I don’t buy the excuse the the urban poor are to busy surviving to care about cleanliness. They clearly know the value of cleanliness but just don’t care enough. Cost nothing to pick up after yourself. It’s just another excuse to transfer personal responsibility to others.

I also lived for awhile in a medium sized city in the South. Lots of poor black folks where I lived and without exception they kept their yards spotless. Grass cut, fences mended, the whole 9 yards. No one wanted their neighbor to “talk” about them.

High density city living results in loose social structures so people are not policing each others behavior as much You would expect the city to step in and play that role by way of tighter enforcement of regulations. Alas, what can you expect from an administration that can’t pick up the garbage on time consistently. Hence you have the situation we have today.

Just pointing out that putting trash out in big platic bags on the sidewalk is actually only a NYC/north jersey city thing in my experience. Most other cities I’ve been in they put out garbage in dumpsters, trash cans, etc

Great point. I really hate that there's almost nothing left of the old Third Ward, which was once the main German neighborhood, then Jewish, the. black after 1920. Now it's just a smattering of garden complexes.

There are a few reasons to avoid knocking down historic buildings. I'd say even more important than character and history are things like land use. Many historic buildings were erected before shitty zoning policies and before ridiculous corporate-handouts like mandatory minimum parking requirements. Knocking down buildings in many cities means you'll never recover the density of the old buildings due to new set backs, etc. In those cases, it is unwise. Replacing an old row of pedestrian-friendly store fronts with one drive-through restaurant and tons of asphalt around it ruins a neighborhood.

But if the city of allows high density building, it's often a better choice to knock down and rebuild. If the city allows mixed use buildings, even better. Take the new dorm at NJIT "the View", as an example. It replaced a gorgeous, historic castle-like old school... sad, but the old school had been abandoned for the last 12 years because the maintenance costs were prohibitively expensive and the rooms were too small anyway. It was full of fire hazards. The new dorm uses the entire lot, has parking under. It's an example of great land use. My only complaint is that I thought they'd include a few store fronts that were accessible to the public at the street level. That would have been killer. But, overall the new building is a big improvement over an impractical yet charming old castle.

One issue is when people don’t use garbage cans. Animals rip apart bags and then it’s spread down the block. The city should do more to insist on cans and dumpsters instead of bags just piled on the curb.

I wish I knew It’s horrible to see though

In the words of the great Lil Wayne, “…the money is the motive.”

What do you think changed??

Growing up in the Ironbound our streets were immaculate, and the ladies would even wash the sidewalks daily. The last 10 years it’s almost unrecognizable. The amount of litter on the streets is mind blowing. People don’t have any consideration for their community here like they used to. Really sad.

I think it's a combination of things:

1. Lack of local government funding to provide resources and support services to keep areas clean and maintained I.e., Montclair Ave. and Broadway are covered in litter. Just adding garbage cans to the end of each block and ensuring that they are maintained by the city's sanitation services could help with future littering. 

2. Community mentality Some people believe that nothing will change. Some people feel overwhelmed by it and will give up before trying. Others are used to it and might not realize that they deserve better. Also, the areas that are hit the hardest are those with low incomes. It's hard to prioritize the safety and cleanliness of your surroundings when living paycheck to paycheck and focusing on trying to survive. 

3. Newark needs better infrastructure and sanitation regulations. Apartment buildings need to provide residents with better sanitation options and have the proper amount of resources to keep up with the sanitation created. 

Two examples of inadequate sanitation practices displayed by apartment buildings

Forest Hill Apartments has fewer than 10 dumpsters, and they are filled to capacity before garbage day arrives. Another issue is that the locations are inconvenient for some, so dropping off garbage in front of someone else's house (which is really effin rude) is more appealing than walking a few blocks to drop off a 13-liter bag of trash.

The apartment building on Verona Ave. and Beaumont (near the daycare) has residents toss their trash in regular-sized garbage cans, which they leave in the front of the building until garbage day. This attracts rodents and can easily become a hazmat situation. Just because this apartment building isn't as large as the Forest Hills apartments does not mean it shouldn't invest in better practices for disposing trash.

Of course, there are those who feel entitled to litter, but ultimately, it comes down to what the Newark government prioritizes, which sadly does not include the health of its residents.

Edited for grammar and spelling.

@$$hole people.

Given that she claims that the city’s (black) history starts with the rebellion I wouldn’t put much stock in what she has to say. That completely excludes all of the black history that Newark is renowned for up to that point and is a pretty wildly ignorant claim from someone who fashions herself a “historian”.

I'm not a student, but I would be interested in helping this initiative. Honestly, at this point the community needs to step up and take care of their surroundings. T

Also, I'd recommend connecting with future potential candidates who would be interested in supporting activities like this. I'm currently working with Mothers Demand Action and seeing if Sheila Montague (ran against Baraka in the last election) would be willing to help with the efforts in tackling the rising gun violence happening in Newark.

Newark has so much potential but the lack of government support and the lackadaisical attitude many residents have prevented it from growing.

Aye, but they call it the poverty trap for a reason.

A pretty balanced article. It is a difficult subject. And the author does a pretty fair analysis.I just wish that Ms del tufo would not burnish her amazing legacy by continuing to fight about Harriet Tubman Square.

Are there urban areas in the US that are heavily modest-income rentals in terms of housing stock that nevertheless still DON'T have a major litter problem?

The most fascinating building I know that exists in Newark is the old "Roosevelt Theater" tucked behind some apartment buildings on clinton ave and Leslie st.

It's a HUMONGOUS "paramount movie-palace type theater room from the 1920's.

You wouldn't know it was there, unless you looked on google maps satellite. You'll find it smack in the middle of the block where there should be yards.

currently owned by "pc pilgrim cathedral". Completely in disrepair and failing roof.

Pilgrim cathedral actually runs their whole service from the -entrance- hallway space of the old movie palace (entrance on clinton ave).

They don't have the money to rehab the actual movie palace building... probably would run in the millions. So they keep it sealed off. The previous pastor I spoke to had plans for it, but it never came to fruition.

But it isn't this bad in wealthier rental areas like Manhattan. But I think that is because the tenants in Manhattan aren't scared of getting pushed out given their wealth.

What neighborhood are you in? If your neighbors are a big issue call 311 AND report it on the city app. One or two summons will get a lot of response from the property owner. The thing is the city doesn’t PROACTIVELY go around looking for filthy front yards. But immediate neighbor complaints go a long way.

Living with litter isn't good for mental health and a happy day. It is like living in a dirty apartment.

I think you nailed it. If you don't own the apartment, if you run around sprucing the area up, some dickhead landlord will jack up the rent.

But living in squalor isn't good for mental health.

I've noticed a big problem is that a lot of owners no longer live there but rather rent the house out. Tenants have no incentive to sweep the sidewalk or shovel etc.

You notice right away which homes have homeowners and which don't.