REVERE, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) - Revere residents say rats are running rampant in the city.
There is a city council meeting Monday night where many residents plan to demand action or they say they will move out.
Stephanie Desisto has lived in Revere for 55 years, but says she only started seeing rats running around during the day.
“For them to be crossing the street! And for people to see them. This is new,” Desisto said. “It would give you reason to say maybe I should put a for sale sign and get out!”
Revere mayor Daniel Rizzo says the city has already spent thousands of dollars trying to eliminate the rat population. He says there are even funds set aside to bait neighborhoods, but as Revere continues to grow, so will the problem.
“In our case, we're doing a lot of water and sewer work. It disrupts the rodents where they would normally be and they migrate to other areas,” Rizzo said.
But residents say construction is not the only reason for rats. One of the largest problems is trash that sits out in the open, luring rats onto the streets.
Revere has a trash ordinance requiring garbage to be covered, and construction sites are also required to put out rat bait. But Ward 4 councilor Stephen Reardon says laws only go so far.
“It's like putting a band aid on a severed artery. Enforcement is something we have to look into,” Reardon said.
Reardon says he's looking to pass a tougher enforcement ordinance, but in the meantime both he and Rizzo are asking residents to do their part and keep their trash covered.
Residents are also calling for the city’s health inspector to attend Monday night’s meeting.
For more on the City Council meeting, visit the Revere website.
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