Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

City works with residents to clean up neighborhood

Pittman block party

Courtesy Photo

City of Henderson officials, from left, Barbara Geach, of the Neighborhood Services Department; Councilwoman Gerri Schroder; police officer Gus Leigh; and Tyler Garland, of the Neighborhood Services Department serve food to Pittman residents during a block party Sept. 20.

Click to enlarge photo

Police officer Gus Leigh hands out potato chips during a block party at Wells Park in Pittman.

Residents of Pittman celebrated months of cleanup in their neighborhood Saturday with a city-sponsored party at Wells Park, complete with free food, a giant bounce house and face painting.

It capped an effort since May by the city of Henderson and residents to spruce things up in one of Henderson's oldest neighborhoods. The city stepped up code enforcement and police efforts and provided materials to help residents clean up their properties.

"It has been a challenged neighborhood for awhile," said Barbara Geach, a Henderson Neighborhood Services employee. "This is an older neighborhood, and there is no HOA (homeowners association) like in the newer neighborhoods," she said.

The city spent more than $315,000 in grant money to help Pittman residents bring their homes up to code. The idea, Geach said, was to be proactive.

"We want to help residents come up to code rather than just issuing citations," she said.

Animal Control Officer Zac Zarach said that one of the main problems in the neighborhood was broken fencing, leading to dogs getting out of yards. Zarach said he found many residents simply didn't know how to fix a broken fence. Grant money was used to help those residents.

Dumpsters were brought in for yard debris, and new reflectors were put in the streets. Graffiti was painted over, and curbs were repainted.

The Henderson Police Department also stepped up patrols in the area and talked to residents to find out what crimes they felt were issues and ways to prevent them.

A new police substation is being built on Sunset Road near Pittman.

"One thing that surprised us was that most people said they felt safe, even though this is a high-crime neighborhood," said Tyler Garland of Henderson Neighborhood Services.

Geach said, however, that the residents of apartment complexes did not feel as safe as homeowners.

"Some of the houses have been here 20-30 years. Neighbors know each other and have that sense of community," she said.

Volunteers from Heaven Can Wait animal shelter assisted in catching feral cats in the neighborhood, provided spay and neuter services and then released the cats.

"There was one woman who was feeding a few cats back in December," said Judy Erickson of Heaven Can Wait. "Now she has a few more, so we spayed and neutered the new ones."

The city's Code Enforcement, Neighborhood Services and Animal Control departments all had booths set up in the park for residents to gather information and ask questions.

"Cooperation is important," Zarach said. "No one agency or community can do it on their own."

Diana Cox can be reached at 990-8183 or [email protected].

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