by KYW's Michelle Durham
North Philadelphia residents and members of the activist group "Acorn" gathered outside the Municipal Services Building in center city on Wednesday to call attention to the problem of abandoned lots in the city.
They have a list of 24 lots that they wanted cleaned up within the next month.
Aura lives near one of the vacant lots and explains how the neglected, overgrown places affect her:
"Somebody saw raccoons. I'm visually impaired, and if I come to the door one morning early, a raccoon could be on my step and could jump right in my door and I wouldn't know it."
Bessie Fisher says she's lost count of the number of times she's called the city to help clean them up:
"They say, 'It's not my problem -- you have to call this number.' "
Doug Oliver, a spokesman for the Nutter administration, says two of the lots in question are owned by the city and they will be cleaned immediately. The others, he says, are privately owned and notices are being sent to the owners.
So whom should residents about neglected, trash-strewn lots? Oliver says:
"If ever there is a problem like this, we want people to call Licenses and Inspections: 215-686-0000."
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