Little Help Here?

I just received an email reminding me that you can submit online service requests here to the District government. This a very handy service as it handles everything from abandoned cars to street light repair to illegal dumping clean-up. Basically this is the online version of the Mayor's Call Center (202-727-1000). I have not yet had occasion to use the online reports, but I have telephoned the call center many a time. The results have been mixed. I had particular issues trying to get a vacant lot cleaned up. The city's failure to clean the lot presented a problem not only because I had to look out my window and see trash everyday, but also because once one person dumped trash out there others would see it and follow suit. So pretty soon you would have like ten separate dumps on one property. There was all this broken glass out there where kid would play. There were pressurized cans in a lot that had, on more than one occasion, been set on fire by local youth. I envisioned one of these cans exploding on some 12 year old playing with matches. We were lucky not to have rats. The city cleaned it up after more than three months of phone calls. Ten days later someone else dumped more stuff there.