Residents at the Patterson Houses in the Bronx say normally, their landlord, the New York City Housing Authority, doesn't do much to take care of the complex. But in the past few days, they say workers from the Housing Authority and the city Sanitation Department suddenly seemed to be paying attention: They removed garbage, painted staircases and polished floors.

The reason for this early spring cleaning? Residents suspect it had something to do with the arrival Monday afternoon of Lynne Patton, a personal friend of the Trump family who is the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development administrator for New York and New Jersey.

“There was garbage in front of my building,” said resident Christopher Lewis, 31, who’s spent nearly his entire life at Patterson. “If you go in front of my building right now, it's empty. They didn't care about us last week. And they're caring now because she's here.”

A housing authority representative said staff had not been instructed to change their routine ahead of Patton’s arrival. A spokeswoman for the Sanitation Departments said in a statement they “offer supplemental services to NYCHA when needed.”