ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
A dead rat is seen on pavement of Union Street.
By THOMAS GRILLO
LYNN — There’s a reason the downtown isn’t looking its best: The city’s street sweeper is in the shop.
“The downtown is a mess,” said Andrew Hall, commissioner of the Department of Public Works. “Our sweeper has been broken for a week and we’re waiting on parts.”
A walk through Central Square and up Union Street takes a little effort to avoid the Dunkin’ Donuts coffee cups, potato chip bags, candy wrappers and even a dead rat near North Shore Furniture. It wasn’t much better at Caruso’s Pizza or Aaron’s where an assortment of trash was strewn on the streets.
None of the merchants would talk to The Item when asked to comment on the state of the downtown’s cleanliness. Pedestrians were a little more willing to offer their take on it.
Rodney Garcia, who just had soup at Pho Minh Ky Restaurant, said he’s used to the litter and hardly notices it anymore.
“I know it’s there, but I just don’t think about it,” he said. “I have bigger things to worry about.”
Rosemarie Gonsalves and her daughter, who were en route to pick up a prescription at Eaton Apothecary, said now that the snow’s melted she’s noticing the litter.
“It doesn’t look like the most inviting part of the city,” she said. “They could do a better job keeping it clean since there are so many businesses.”
Hall said the city’s street sweeper usually cleans the downtown streets five nights a week. But it has been out of service since last Wednesday.
The citywide street sweeping program began Monday. DPW contracts with a firm to sweep, weather permitting.
The twice yearly project started in West Lynn’s Ward 7 in West Lynn and will end in Ward 1. In the fall, it will be reversed and they will start in Ward 1.
Typically, it takes a week to complete the sweep in each ward, weather permitting, Hall said.
“It was canceled on Tuesday because it poured and we expect it to be canceled on Thursday for rain,” he said.
Sweeping operations are conducted from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Illegally parked cars will receive a $15 ticket.
Thomas Grillo can be reached at tgrillo@itemlive.com.