Scott Satchfield / Eyewitness News
CHALMETTE, La. -- For Leslie Wilson, Jr. it’s a daily sight -- two houses on his block in Chalmette that have been vacant for years and are rotting away.
"They won't cut the grass. It's an eyesore," Wilson said. "It's deplorable. It's nasty."
Blighted structures continue littering neighborhoods across St. Bernard Parish, but officials say they're gearing up to take them down.
"We promised to move forward. We've already started," said St. Bernard Parish President David Peralta.
Peralta has only been on the job, officially, for a few weeks, but he said he's already targeting as many as 400 homes for demolition.
Wednesday, crews ripped up old slabs in one neighborhood, and Peralta is warning negligent property owners that their buildings could be next.
He said officials have been re-notifying people whose lots are in non-compliance.
"We'll work with them if there's a solution, but it has to be a very immediate solution, because it's been six years,” he said. “They've been given time to bring their houses into compliance with the rules and ordinances of this parish."
The homes aren't just eyesores. Ask neighbors and they'll tell you, the structures bring plenty of other problems.
The tall grass and weeds on some lots have become home to rodents and snakes, while unsecured buildings attract a bad element.
"The drug addicts go there late at night, and you know, it creates problems," said Sterling Cardon, a Chalmette property owner.
Cardon, who said he's actually bought some blighted properties at auction, believes for many of those that are still left, demolition seems inevitable.
"A lot of these people can't afford it,” he said. “They just can't afford to redo them and that's why they're sitting empty."
But for the many people still living amongst the blight, it's time to move forward.
"Tear it down," Wilson said.
