Get ready to rat out the rodents! A new interactive rat map lets NYC residents get a localized rodent report on any property in the city.
The color-coded interactive map breaks down building-by-building the places that passed their latest inspection, ones that haven’t had an inspection in six months, sites of recent rodent activity and spots that failed their last inspection for other reasons.
Hell’s Kitchen has a number of buildings that have passed their inspection in the previous six months, but a decent portion of properties failed their most recent inspections. About half of the properties in the neighborhood have not had an inspection in the previous six months.
The city’s Rat Czar, Kathleen Corradi, recently toured Hell’s Kitchen hotspots with Council Member Erik Bottcher. In 2022, 311 rat sightings doubled and there has been a concerted effort to combat the city’s long-standing rodent problem. The city’s advice is for residents to use rat-resistant containers, reduce garbage and clutter, remove tall weeds, fill and seal cracks in their building and to properly dispose of trash in a can when on the street or in the park.
At a recent Anti-Rat Day of Action in Harlem, one local expressed the frustrations of many about the New York rodent population. “We’ve had rats the size of crocs just running up and down the street,” said Ruth McDaniels, the president of her local tenants association in Harlem. “Like a croc shoe, average size eight, running up and down the street.”
The tracking of rat activity is done by inspectors from the Department of Health, who look for droppings, tracks, burrows and any live or dead rats at the location. Properties that fail an inspection will have at least one of these signs and must exterminate the infestation and register for re-inspection.
The map allows users to search for their neighborhood by address, community board, or by simply scrolling through. Once a location has been selected, information from the Department of Health shows when the last inspection happened, what type of inspection it was, how many inspections have occurred since 2015 and any action taken. There is even information about properties that have not been inspected in the past six months.
Check out the map here, and if you still have rodent concerns, check out Rat Mitigation Zones — otherwise known as areas with high levels of rat activity in NYC that are currently being targeted by city agencies.
Mathews-Palmer Playground has had 35 inspections since 2005 and no treatments by the NYC Health Department despite rat activity. Why?