Trash Me

Get your brooms ready: Mayor Michael Nutter has released his Philly Spring Cleanup agenda. The cleaning event will take place April 5th, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m., and aims to organize 25,000 volunteers across the city.

Over the next few weeks, I'll bring updates and encourage your participation in this event, but for now the Mayor sums up his mission quite nicely.

From the Mayor’s letter:

“During my 2007 mayoral campaign I pledged to clean up Philadelphia. As your Mayor, I am going to fulfill this promise by reducing the amount of litter and trash that plague our city’s neighborhoods, streets, parks and recreation centers. I have made litter reduction a priority in my administration and am committed to making Philadelphia one of the cleanest cities in America.

On Saturday, April 5th I will kick-off my commitment to a cleaner city by sponsoring a massive citywide Philly Spring Cleanup. Our plan is to recruit thousands of Philadelphians to help clean major sections of our city; to raise awareness about litter prevention; to instill neighborhood pride and civic responsibility in residents in an effort to keep our city clean each and every day."

The announcement continues to lists ambitious goals, including cleaning 5,000 residential blocks and 50 commercial corridors, beautifying 10 acres of Fairmount Park, and removing over 1 million pounds of garbage.

And to reach these goals, the Mayor calls for neighborhood leaders to join the effort immediately: volunteer and site registration is already under way. Block captains, businesses, community and faith-based organizations and dedicated citizens are asked to serve as local leaders, assisting with preparation over the next few weeks and acting as site coordinators during the event. For more information about becoming a neighborhood leader, or for other areas where you can help, contact Carlton Williams, Deputy Streets Commissioner, at 215-686-5470.