Residents hope to beautify area

Some North Side residents say cleanups can help.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Susan Sexton of Redondo Road hopes her enthusiasm for improving the city's North Side is contagious.
Sexton was among a handful of residents who spent Saturday cleaning up their neighborhood.
"What we're doing is what neighborhood folks should do: look beyond your own driveway and yard," said Sexton, while cleaning debris at Ohio and Bissell avenues.
City Councilman Richard Atkinson, R-3rd, organized the cleanup between Redondo Road and Broadway Avenue from Ohio to Fifth avenues.
"It's a spring cleanup for the community," he said. "We want to keep the pride up in the community."
Long way to go
Atkinson, a Redondo Road resident, and Sexton admit there's still a long way to go before the targeted area is in good shape.
The pair and some of their neighbors, as well as Mahoning County jail trustees and city street department workers, spent Saturday cleaning up the area. But there are numerous abandoned and dilapidated houses in the area. The grass is several feet high in front of those houses.
"People who own vacant houses could care less about their property," Atkinson said.
Sexton, who has lived on the North Side since 1996 with her husband Gary, said the area is a transitional neighborhood with many rental properties.
"A lot of folks don't have the interest or the energy to take care of their homes," she said. "They're doing what they can to get dinner on the table every night. But this is a fabulous area, and I want to be part of the city's revival."
Also want to help
Rod Duggar and Paul Carr, who live in a 91-year-old home on Fairgreen Avenue, are also interested in reviving the city. The pair moved from California about a year ago to the North Side house.
"Neighborhood cleanups help make the area a nicer place to live," Duggar said. "This could be a really beautiful neighborhood if people would work together."
Carr said the community is moving in the right direction, and more people are interested in purchasing North Side houses.
"The cleanup is a good thing, and a step in the right direction," he said.
skolnick@vindy.com