23rd Street Residents At War Over Cigarette Butts

For the third year in a row, 23rd Street’s Aaron Brashear, founder of Concerned Citizens of Greenwood Heights, and his wife Mic are battling residents in a neighboring condo building over stray cigarette butts.

“We have once again found cigarette butts in our backyard,” the couple recently wrote in a letter to their neighbors. “It has been in the 90+ degrees for the past few days, let alone a very hot summer to date. It should be obvious to anyone of average intelligence that this is a PROBLEM.

“Just burns my butt (pun inteneded) that whomever is doing this (and also dropping butts into their own property’s yard…to the angst and disgust of those tenants) cannot see how absolutely stupid this is,” Aaron told us.

“The landlord has not said a peep,” he continued, “nor done anything. We have basically given up calling/writing the owners.”

Aaron said that the rental building in question is owned by Kings Materials, a Brooklyn building materials supplier. We, too, have reached out to the owner for comment, but have not received a response.

It wouldn’t take much at this point for a discarded cigarette butt to set a patch of dry grass on fire, so the couple’s frustration is understandable. What is the best way to deal with a situation like this?

Photo via Aaron Brashear