NAPLES
There’s no evidence of who’s responsible for the mess on the highway. Still, the Florida Department of Transportation told WINK News it’s their responsibility to clean up the litter on the highway and its exits.
Panhandlers, shopping carts filled with trash, pillows, coolers, chairs, and lots of litter scattered pell-mell along I-75 South exit 111 to get onto Immokalee Road.
Naples resident, Dina Moretti, spoke with WINK News about the increasingly dirty area.
“Starting to look like the streets of the Bronx. There’s just you know sleeping bags. And bottles. And beer bottles and just absolute trash on the sides of the streets,” Moretti said.
Trash along the side of I-75. CREDIT: WINK News
Moretti told WINK News she drives past the bags, bottles, and cans to get home every day. And it was never something she expected to see in Naples.
“I was an NYPD detective for 20 years, newly retired from the Bronx, and we moved here to get away from that and to not be in that type of environment, and it’s extremely discouraging to see that here. That’s why we moved here,” Moretti said.
Moretti is not the only person thinking along these lines. The litter and panhandlers on either side of the road around the exit have caused quite a commotion in the area.
One man called the exit an eyesore and said it was time for Collier to clean the mess up and “get rid of the so-called beggars.”
Trash seen near I-75. CREDIT: WINK News
More than 100 comments from neighbors, Moretti included, asked for solutions.
“I’m hoping for resolution. I’m hoping that the local municipalities can do something about it. Collier county has an abundance of resources for homeless,” Moretti said.
WINK News asked the sheriff’s office what consequences people would face if they are caught littering, and a spokesperson directed WINK News to the county.
The county didn’t answer our questions, then told WINK News FDOT would handle it.
After asking FDOT, they told WINK News they plan to send a crew to clean up the area.
WINK NEWS