Rats still problem, committee hears It may require more action from TNT Crust By Ray Barrington News-Chronicle A rat problem near TNT Crust, 1438 Cedar St., has not eased since the Green Bay Protection and Welfare Committee looked at it last fall, an area resident told the committee Wednesday. As a result, TNT may get a letter from the city requiring further measures to be taken to clean up the scrap crust spills that are keeping the rats well-fed - and loyal to the neighborhood. Lynn Austin, who brought the problem to the committee last year, returned after dueling with the city about the problem. She said despite reports from the city's inspectors, the rats were still going through area yards to get to the crust droppings. The rats' target is an area where scrap crust is trucked away to be ground into cattle feed. Last year, TNT owners voluntarily made attempts to solve the problem, adding some tighter sealing for the trucks at the loading dock. However, especially on weekends, the problem is still there, Austin told the committee. She presented several photographs - some shot using an infrared camera - of rats in her yard and rat tracks in the factory area, as well as the tracks of squirrels and cats that prey on the rats. One shot showed a rat, gnawed by a cat, with pizza crust in the rat's mouth. Tom Lesperance of the city's inspection department said the department reacted to complaints and did not do abatement treatment. Austin, working with university and Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary experts, discovered the rats' breeding ground, in an area along Baird Creek near Main, Elizabeth and Henry streets. The area includes rocks, needed for building nests, and running water. The rats went from there to the TNT neighborhood, she said. Committee chairman Guy Zima said TNT had made an effort to fix the problem, but "their best efforts show holes in the plan." He said he believed a garage might have to be built in the area to enclose it during loading times, but that had been deemed impractical by TNT owners, who talked to Zima before the meeting but could not attend. A task force is looking at the situation and probable remedies. It is in the process of putting together proposals for agency cooperation in Green Bay government and plans to report back to the committee in March. - The committee, at the recommendation of Ald. Gary Kriescher, sent to the City Council a recommendation to increase fines for overly-loud music in vehicles. Current fines are $50 plus court costs ($102 total), $10 over the state-suggested minimum. The new fine would be the state maximum - $80 plus court costs ($139.20 total) The fine for a second offense within a year would be $200 plus $88 court costs ($288 total).