SAN ANTONIO — It's smelly.
It's dangerous.
It's not going away.
That's what neighbors on the southeast side are saying about a mountain of trash outside a vacant home.
For five months, they say they've tried everything to get the owner to clean it up.
It's a problem that started near the end of November. The house is undergoing renovations and a bunch of trash was thrown in a dumpster in front of the home.
But the trash wasn't thrown away.
Neighbors say on more than one occasion, the trash in the dumpster was thrown back in the driveway.
"It's smelled to high heaven with flies everywhere," said Noralyn Ripps, who lives down the block. "This has never happened in this neighborhood."
KENS 5 called the City of San Antonio's Code Enforcement Services who is offering a new solution.
"This is one of the rare streets where everyone takes care of their grass, takes care of their home," said Erin Reid, President of the Highland Park Neighborhood Association.
On Astor Street, one front yard stands out from the rest.
"I don't know if there was a dispute over non-payment, but when you consider how large these dumpsters are, that was dumped not once but twice now in this driveway," said Ripps. "The last time it was dumped, it was taller than I am. I am 5'1"."
Neighbors say trash is blowing into other yards, vagrants are dumpster diving and strangers are adding their trash to the pile.
"They're throwing away tires, this mattress over here," said Ripps, pointing at the driveway. "There's children that walk here on the sidewalk...there are nails, glass and other things."
Ripps says Highland Park has experienced problems with illegal dumping before, but it occurred in more hidden areas, such as behind businesses.
Reid, who's addressed the issue with city leaders at neighborhood association meetings, says they've exhausted all options to clean up the mess.
"The city will tell us and has told our neighbors, 'We're just going to keep fining them'. But at some point, that doesn't keep us safe," said Reid. "We've seen the red signs on the door. The owners don't live in state. There's no impetus for them to actually be responsible."
The house belongs to Creative Home Buys, LLC out of Denver, Colorado.
San Antonio's Code Enforcement Services says they've kept a close eye on the house at 223 Astor since January and gave the owners two chances to correct the violation.
Now, with a citation issued April 16, the owner must appear in court. On the citation posted by the front door, it says the owner is scheduled for a hearing at the San Antonio Municipal Court at 9 a.m. on May 20.
The city will now intervene by getting one of their contractors to clean up the junk within the next few weeks.
A lien will be placed on the property, and the owner won't be able to sell the house until they pay the city back for the cleanup.
KENS 5 tried calling and messaging the owners beginning Wednesday. We also gave contact information to a man checking the property for the owners Thursday. We have not heard back.
If you're dealing with a similar mess in your neighborhood, San Antonio Code Enforcement says the first step is to call 311.