Springfield officials concerned over drug use, litter in city parks

SPRINGFIELD, MA (WGGB/WSHM) - Fentanyl and drug use in local parks is a major problem in Springfield and, on Tuesday, city leaders highlighted the issue and express their concerns.

Officials said that drug use and dumping have been ongoing problems in Springfield parks, with cleanup crews having to go to Johnny Appleseed Park several times a week. It’s, sometimes, even to the extent of once-a-day to clean up the extensive, and sometimes dangerous, mess.

When our crew arrived at the park Tuesday morning, litter was seen scattered all over the ground, but it wasn’t your typical soda cans. The park was covered in drug paraphernalia, beer cans and bottlecaps, and discarded needles. According to Springfield City Councilor Brian Santaniello, that type of mess happens overnight, every night. “There’s no drug-free zones in the state of Mass. between the hours of midnight and 5 a.m. That’s intolerable, we can’t deal with that,” he said.

Santaniello also pointed out that this isn’t a problem that’s unique to Springfield. Headlines out of Boston have also highlighted the issue of discarded needles in parks after a four-year-old had to be rushed to the hospital after stepping on a needle in a South Boston park.

Now, city leaders are taking it a step further and are pushing for legislation to help stop this at the root level. Today, starting at 4 p.m. on ABC40, hear from a frequent parkgoer who is begging residents to clean up their own mess, plus we’ll break down the legislation that city councilors plan on pushing so Springfield parks can be free of drugs, clean, and safer for kids.