Land Of The Lost:
Lot Legacy Of Neglect —
Home To Rats, Trash And Danger

By STEPHEN McGUIRE 

Neighbors say, there’s an accident waiting to happen on a dirty little corner in Southeast Queens that was once a playground for children and is now a dangerous dumping ground of pipes, glass, rats and no responsibility.

The parcel of land at the Jamaica intersection of 171st Street and 109th Avenue has literally gone to the dumps, and what PRESS investigation uncovered was a long history of neglect.

At 171st Street and 109th Avenue lies what looks like a once quiet park.

But it is obvious those days are long gone.

A rusted chain-link fence that once surrounded the property has been pulled away to the side, making the site accessible to virtually anyone.

Despite the fact that Department of Sanitation “No Dumping” signs are attached to what remains of the fence, rats, broken glass, bags of trash, discarded air conditioners and assorted debris litter the floor.

The trash and garbage bags camouflage busted and broken razor-edged aluminum piping that juts out of the eroded and cracked concrete.

Rats scurried into the garbage bags on the site.

A skeleton of concrete remains where functional park benches were and a deteriorating slide stands alone in a corner on three legs that could never safely support the weight of a children.

Eugene Slater lives in his 171st Place home next door to his worst nightmare. “Things have gotten worse,” he told the PRESS. “Kids hang out there late at night. They urinate and defecate. It’s terrible,” Slater said

“It’s been like that for years,” Slater said.

Slater also explained that his property has suffered and he must keep his children away from the area at all costs, he said.

“The branches might fall and hit my children,” ages seven, eight and 11, he explained, referring to the overgrown trees that grow from the site and onto his property.

The trees have already “destroyed the roof of my garage,” Slater said.

According to the President of a local civic group, the dumping ground has been a dangerous eyesore that won’t go away.

Brinkerhoff Action Association President Manuel Caughman said his group has been trying to get in touch with the owner of the land since 1996 to find a solution to the problem, to no avail.

“We would love to have it as a green thumb project,” Caughman said.

But that’s merely a dream at this point, he explained.

According to Caughman, pinning down the owner of the land parcel has been no easy task.

New York City tax records indicate the land belongs to a Brooklyn man named David Landau.

However several attempts by the PRESS in recent months to contact Landau at his Brooklyn residence remained unanswered.

And little is known about the owner of what has become a neighborhood.

In 1996, the Brinkerhoff Action Association fired off a letter to Landau regarding the “horrendous condition of the site.”

The letter read, “As you might imagine, aside from being an unsightly eyesore, this situation poses the serious problem of being a health, environmental, and safety hazard in our community. For some time, residents and homeowners have complained about the abominable condition of that area. We are now appealing to you to take immediate action to rectify the situation by cleaning up the site.”

Also in 1996, an ombudsman from then-Public Advocate Mark Green’s office wrote to Landau to request “the clean–up (that) has reportedly not been completed.”

In addition Community Board 12 District Manager Yvonne Reddick also said that her community board has been unable to contact Landau.

It’s a shame, Reddick said. “People do things like buy land and take a walk.”

The years-long problem has received the attention of local politicians but that has done little to change things, neighbors said.

According to Assemblyman William Scarborough’s office, volunteer clean-up crews have visited the corner land parcel to clean the site. But the problems return soon afterward, community officials said.

Councilman Leroy Comrie told the PRESS this week that his office is aggressively pursuing a remedy to the situation and said he will be working closely with the Brinkerhoff Action Association to see that things get done.

In addition, the office of Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum told the PRESS that they are “looking into the matter.”

Although local officials have told neighbors they are working to solve the problem, “We really feel neglected,” Slater said.

“I’ve lived on and off in the house for fifty years. This has been a problem for the last 20,” he said. “I am at a standstill, I might as well just move.”