CHEEKTOWAGA, NY (WKBW) — Neighbors in south Cheektowaga are speaking out about tall grass, weeds, and overgrown brush on town-owned property behind their homes, saying the highway department is not doing enough to maintain it.
Diane Scholl contacted 7 News after a previous report about uncut brush on Donald Drive. Scholl and her neighbors want the town highway department to do a better job cleaning up behind their Whitney Place homes.
"Now we have to beg, borrow and steal to get anybody to come here and address this issue," Scholl explained. "We're being ignored. We're giving excuse after excuse, and we're running out of patience.”
Crews recently cleaned up behind Scholl's home, but she has also been fighting for a nearby creek to be cleared.
Neighbor Andrew Bojarski showed a highway leader the problem firsthand. The waterway remains clogged and overgrown.
"He says the weeds that are growing there filter the water. So, I don't know how you can filter the water when it's all backed up on a corner by me — it backs up over 10 feet. There's no water flow," Bojarski said.
WATCH: Cheektowaga residents speak out about tall grass, weeds, and overgrown brush on town-owned property
However, the town must follow strict environmental rules for those creeks. Town Highway Superintendent Rick Rusiniak explained that the vegetation serves an important purpose.
"These are filters for the environment. This is what they're supposed to be. Anything where you see cattails, this is good for us. This is where it takes filters this water. Everything here goes to Lake Erie," Rusiniak described.
I met with Rusiniak as his crews were cutting and trimming along Heritage Court. He described the scale of the department's workload.
"We got 100 lots this size or bigger on top of all the 21 miles of ditch that we take care of," Rusiniak responded. “We are doing what we can, and we're not slacking. We're getting it done.”
When I asked what he would say to residents who continue to say the town is not doing a good job, Rusiniak pointed to budget and staffing constraints.
"We got a tough budget, a tough tax situation in Cheektowaga. If I had more people, I could do more. But I'm limited to what I have. We're running paving crews, ditch crews, DI crews. So, we're busy everywhere," Rusiniak replied.
Since the previous report aired Monday, Donald Drive resident Ray Jensen said crews finally cut some of the area behind his house — but did not go far enough.
"I feel better that it was mowed, but they did an absolutely horrible job..." Jensen stated from his yard.
For now, the town is asking residents to be patient.
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