Pittsburgh Mayor Bob O'Connor's "redd up crew" rolled into the Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood on the North Side just after dawn today and got to work.

A front-end loader scraped clean the littered city lot at McCook Street and Lieb Way and put the debris in a dump truck.

A flusher swept down the streets near the intersection of California Avenue and Marshall Avenue, spraying water and washing dust into the sewers. A Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority vactor sucked debris out of the sewers.

Police identified an abandoned Cadillac, got it up on a contractor's flatbed, and had it hauled away, while a building inspector eyeballed the homes and sidewalks.

Workers boarded up abandoned homes that were either owned by the city or just seemed hazardous.

It was a show of force, and an early Earth Day present for the neighborhood that was much appreciated by Randy Mitchell, a caterer and seven-year resident of Atmore Street.

"When the city jumps in, it gets other people moving," he said, as he swept his walkway amidst the whirl of activity.

The "redd up crew" is a new concept for the junk-plagued city. While each Public Works Department division will continue with regular maintenance and cleanup work, the specialized, six-man crew, named for the a Pittsburghese phrase for picking up or straightening up, will hit the city's dirtiest spots.

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.