Pitch in: Washington cleanup days could result in friendly competition
Fern Sibert is pitching a little friendly competition to spur some interest in upcoming cleanup days in Washington.
The director of Clean and Tidy our County Inc. suggested the idea at Monday’s City Council meeting.
On March 23, the organization’s focus will be on ramps and roads; April 20, parks and playgrounds, and May 18, streams that run through Washington.
“Whoever could pick up the most trash on those days, we would have a little snack for you, some pizza and some drinks, at the end of the day,” Sibert said. “If everybody picks up two or three bags of trash, the city will look better. Cleaning up your ward shows the pride that the city is a wonderful place to live. Even if only 10 bags of trash get picked up, that’s better than nothing.”
Volunteers are being sought to help with the cleanups. Fliers containing a QR code letting people know how to register will be posted throughout the city. Those interested in helping out may also visit the group’s Facebook page.
Sibert also is seeking someone to lead the efforts in each ward.
“We need leaders that live in those wards to contact me so we can get them set up with garbage bags and gloves, so you can meet with your neighbors and friends who are helping you pick up the trash in the area,” she said. “I’m looking for leaders to go out and tell their neighbors we’re going to have the cleanest ward in the city.”
Sibert also scheduled another bottle-cap sorting event planned for 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 6 at Holy Trinity Church, 605 Hewitt Ave.
“It’s sit and sort,” Sibert said. “You sit at a table and sort clean and dirty bottle caps. It would be wonderful if more people would wash and clean their bottle caps before they drop them off, but I understand sometimes it doesn’t happen that way. You can come up for one hour. You can come out for the whole day.”
Sibert said about 7,000 pounds of bottle caps need to be sorted – enough to be converted into about 60 eco-friendly park benches.
Sibert said local businesses typically donate snacks for those who help with the bottle caps.
Also Monday, Steve Woods, representing NAACP Washington, addressed council concerning the city’s Juneteenth celebration, scheduled for 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 15. The first event in the city took place in 2023 at the LeMoyne Center and included a parade.
“It’s a family-friendly event,” Woods said. “We’re proud of it. We had a lot of people come and enjoy what we’re trying to do as we teach about the culture. We want to build on that success, and hopefully this is something we can have annually that the city of Washington can be proud of, as well as the NAACP.”
Woods asked if the city would waive its fee of $85 an hour for a minimum of four hours for police presence at the parade.
“The cost would be about $340 per man,” Woods said. “Last year, we had four. That’s a cost of about $1,400. We’re just getting off the ground and we’re hoping the city of Washington can grant us a waiver of that fee of what it would cost for the barricades to be manned by city police officers.”
Mayor JoJo Burgess said the request will be considered and voted upon at council’s Thursday meeting.