Rodent sightings are up 30% citywide since 2019 – ABC7 recently wrote – and the Upper East Side appears to be one of the neighborhoods impacted most by this increase. “… in some neighborhoods, it’s even worse – up more than 100% in the last year in Ditmars Steinway, Queens, City Island, the Upper East Side, Lenox Hill, Yorkville and Mott Haven,” wrote ABC’s Darla Miles.
According to NYC Open Data, the Upper East Side saw 888 rodent sighting complaints made to 311 from the beginning of 2021 through October. Here’s a breakdown by zip code:
- 47 in 10065
- 147 in 10021
- 191 in 10075
- 222 in 10028
- 281 in 10128
And here’s a breakdown of complaints by month:
- 73 in January
- 48 in February
- 75 in March
- 105 in April
- 69 in May
- 90 in June
- 104 in July
- 107 in August
- 112 in September
- 105 in October
Many attribute the increase in rodent sightings to factors including emptier streets since the onset of the pandemic, outdoor dining cafes, and a lack of responsiveness from the sanitation department – which on the Upper East Side, there’s been an especially large amount of criticism towards. (Especially following strikes by the infamous Can Tipper of Lex.)
The trash scene on the #dirtyuppereastside (77 & Lex) continues to disappoint this long time resident. @ericadamsfornyc I hope you get @NYCSanitation the resources to get the job done! Only the rats and pigeons are happy. pic.twitter.com/XVjuvfhS22
— NYCTrashTalk (@NYCTrashTalk) October 31, 2021
A November 8 write-up by the New York Times also notes that during the pandemic, “the city inspectors who hunt for evidence of rats were assigned elsewhere, including mass vaccination sites and restaurants, where their mission was to see that customers’ proofs of vaccination were being checked.”
