Patch Question: Does Long Beach Need Street Sweepers?

West End residents in July submitted to the Long Beach and c a written request to employ street sweepers on the restaurant and bar-studded West Beech Street, particularly on weekends when the say garbage on its streets and sidewalks is most noticeable.

“Sunday morning, when I walk to church, I don’t want to walk over somebody’s garbage or broken bottles,” said Maryellen Pollina of Delaware Avenue when reiterating her request at the Aug. 2 City Council meeting.

Pollina and Judy Resnick of Georgia Avenue co-chair the Beautification Committee for the .

“We want the West End to reflect that diamond in the rough that we kind of feel it is,” Pollina said. “We love this community. We want it to be beautiful, we want it to be safe, we want it to be clean.”

Council President Thomas Sofield Jr. said that the city must consider their request for the West End business district as part of a citywide project that includes the central and East End business districts, too. “The issue is that they’re figuring a way to incorporate it as a larger, overall project that encompasses all the business districts throughout the city," he said.

Sofield told the committee women that the city must first figure out certain logistics, such as the number of employees and shifts that would be needed for the project, before moving forward with it.  

Patch would like to know what you think of the West End residents’ request for street sweepers, as well as the possibility that the city may establish such a citywide sanitation project? Let us know in the comments below.