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City of Memphis Turns To Social Media To Fight Blight

The power of social media can bring shame or fame. Pictures of various properties and code violations are circulating on social media apps.
City of Memphis Turns To Social Media To Fight Blight

The power of social media can bring shame or fame. Pictures of various properties and code violations are circulating on social media apps.

The City of Memphis is jumping on board to highlight and clean up blight.

Social media posts are just one-way city officials are maximizing efforts to clean up junk.  Talking to the public works the department told Local 24 it’s all about education.

Neighbors in Overton Square on Court Avenue near N. Morrison Street are talking trash and they are not mincing words.

“They put all that crap out there on the street. That’s going to get worse and going to get spread out all over the yard,” said Coeita Gallagher.

Another neighbor is taking the social media approach, using the Nextdoor app to show the property. The post has multiple photos of trash with a caption that reads, “CURB ALERT.” The address is also listed. The apparent goal get the mess cleaned up.

“I smell something right now. I’m not sure if it’s my mulch or that it’s not attractive,” said Gallagher.

 

The City of Memphis is sharing similar photos Twitter.

“Everybody knows that impact of social media and how important it is,” said Robert Knecht, Director of Public Works. “If communities are advocating for the blight to be gone, they want to find ways to the city help them identify flight and addressing blight, the biggest component is education.”

The city believes the social media approach to highlighting everyday ordinance violence helps reach a larger audience and potentially affect change.

In the case of Court Avenue, the person emptying the house should have already alerted the city two days prior to dumping items near the street.

“The issue there is notice,” said Knecht. “They should let us know that they’re getting to set it out so that we’re aware of the window for it to be removed. Typically, we’re not supposed to remove it, it should be removed by the landlord after it’s been left the curb 72 hours.”

 

Neighbors told Local 24 the three- day window is approaching and now they want the junk and trash removed.

 

The city said neighbors can also help in the process by calling 311 or accessing it online or through the app.

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