An overgrown property in Throggs Neck is getting some much-needed attention after weeds began spilling onto a neighboring homeowner’s property.
The site at 3955 East Tremont Ave. was once home to the Throggs Neck Volunteer Ambulance Corps, an organization with deep roots in the community.
According to Throggs Neck BID executive director Bob Jaen, the property was originally given to the volunteer ambulance corps rather than purchased. The organization later stopped operating at the location, and Jaen says questions over who is currently responsible for maintaining the site have made it difficult for the BID and neighbors to get the conditions addressed.
Jaen says the BID got involved after the woman living next door reached out for help.
“She had 18 feet of monstrous weeds growing through the fence onto her fence and destroying her fence,” Jaen said. “She shouldn’t have to be suffering.”
The BID brought in a landscaper who cut back about 65 feet of overgrowth along the neighboring property line at no cost.
The homeowner says the conditions had become more than just an eyesore.
“I feel like it’s a health hazard to have all these weeds because it brings animals. It brings mosquitoes. It brings all kinds of insects,” she said.
Jaen says the cleanup is only the beginning. He hopes people with ties to the former ambulance corps can work together to determine the future of the property and ultimately bring the site back to life.
Ideas discussed include restoring a community-focused operation at the location or finding another use for the property that would benefit residents.
“Hopefully, this is the start of something really good,” Jaen said. “We’re going to take it from the blight that it is and make it into something more productive and creative so we can help the community.”