A local Girl Scout troop recently teamed up with state Senator Joseph Addabbo to help beautify a deteriorating corner in Glendale.
Girl Scout Troop 4791, with the help of siblings from sister troops and the Sacred Heart Senior Group, were joined by members of Addabbo’s office for a cleanup/planting project at 81st Street and 77th Avenue on Saturday Sept. 24 and Oct. 1.
Addabbo first received complaints about the intersection — which is adjacent to the 80th Street overpass — from people at the Sacred Heart Senior Group, who told the senator how the corner was overgrown with weeds and trees, and littered with garbage.
The Department of Transportation (DOT), which owns the land, agreed to allow Girl Scout Troop 4791, based at Sacred Heart Church, to partner with Addabbo’s office to revamp the area.
“Not only was this intersection a serious eyesore in the community of Glendale, but it also had the potential to become a major public health hazard with the amount of garbage and overgrown weeds that had piled up over the years,” Addabbo said. “Too often, areas just like this one get ignored and are left to become rundown blemishes in the middle of an otherwise beautiful neighborhood. I am pleased that through hard work and cooperation, my office was able to make sure that this neglect does not continue to happen at the corner of 81st Street and 77th Avenue.”
After working with both DOT and the Parks Department, which is responsible for maintaining the area, Addabbo got the city remove an overgrown dead tree from the lot that was leaning into the street, causing a hazard to drivers and pedestrians.
The Girl Scouts then came to improve the area with some much-needed attention, by planting 500 daffodil bulbs, and next spring, the daffodils will be in full bloom thanks to the work of Girl Scout Troop 4791. The girls have agreed to come back in the spring to do a second cleanup and add more flowers to the area.
“This scenario is proof that when we work together, we can shed light on even the smallest of community issues and get past the bureaucracy that sometimes stands in the way of solving them.” Addabbo said. “I extend my deepest thanks to Girl Scout Troop #4791 for their dedication to this project and to the neighborhood of Glendale, as well as to Home Depot for their generous donation that helped make this project possible. I was delighted to see the finished product and to know that from now on, this area will be a bright spot of the community rather than an eyesore.”
Girl Scout Troop 4791 would like to thank Sarah Spellman from Addabbo’s office for organizing the event with the troop, DOT and the Parks Department, as well as the Home Depot in Glendale for their generous donation of materials for the project.
