Riverwest food table complaints over rats, city plans to inspect site

Free food table in Riverwest were created to lend a hand to the community, but some say they're attracting more than the people they want to help. Rodents have become a big problem there. Fox 6's Ashley Sears is here in the studio and explains the city is now looking into this. Ashley? Yeah, this garden and table are located just off Bremen and Clark, and it's between a bar and a convenience store. People in the neighborhood say the free food table might not be the source of a rat problem, but it's not helping. Try and do right and just doesn't always work out like that. This is not what volunteers at the Bremen Community Garden ever wanted. These just look like potatoes. I don't know if that's attracting rats. Complaints that a spot meant to help the community... Might be contributing to another problem. The hope is that people can get here soon enough to get the food before it goes bad. Sunday, a complaint was filed with the Department of Neighborhood Services saying the wonderful free food table has become a rat feeding zone. We've seen them now for the last year. Steve Jennings lives nearby. He says the garden and table might not be the source of the problem, but at times they're not helping. They're out there at night. Or early in the morning. DNS says an inspector will be out to take a look. In the meantime, volunteers like Marty are trying to clean things up. Unfortunately, our numbers for volunteers have dwindled a bit, and we're just not able to be here all the time. In the past, the volunteers have discouraged people from leaving clothing and trinkets. He's asking people to stop bringing old food and perishable items. If things don't change, this. All might have to stop. I guess we just have to monitor it and, yeah, possibly just take it down if it continues to be like that. Records show the city actually owns the property. I'm told a volunteer organization has liability insurance on that lot. Again, DNS says the inspection hasn't happened yet, or if it has, the inspector hasn't entered any information about it.