by Monica Chamness
Staff Writer
Break out the trash bags, Clean It Up Jacksonville!, the first city-wide garbage pick-up drive, is scheduled for Saturday morning.
“We’ll have a big sweep of Jacksonville,” said City Council president Matt Carlucci. “A clean city reflects pride and attachment to identity. If we can raise the level of awareness of its importance and what it means to us all, it will take us to another step in our development. Neighborhoods with a lot of litter almost invite bad elements.”
Enlisting Jacksonville citizens to organize and execute their own community beautification began at Jacksonville Community Council, Inc. One JCCI study this year dealt with litter, and those who participated in the study collaborated with Carlucci to kickoff community empowerment in terms of trash.
And there are future plans to build on this year’s efforts.
City Council members Suzanne Jenkins, Elaine Brown and Gwen Yates are already in a position to help because of their positions on Council committees. They have taken note and, as a result a joint meeting between the Public Health and Safety and the Transportation, Environment and Energy committees will be held to address the issue.
“It’s right at the end of my Council presidency so hopefully the next Council president [Jerry Holland] will continue it,” said Carlucci. “The timing is good because we’ll be taking the budget up in August and September. So as we review the JCCI findings, if there’s any budgetary and policy issues on litter we can make those recommendations to next year’s Finance Committee.”
Homeowner’s associations, citizen’s planning advisory committees, environmentally-conscious organizations or any civic-minded group can put together an event with help from the City’s Clean It Up, Green It Up Division.
For Saturday’s event, five pick-up sites have been designated in each of the six CPAC districts so residents can drop off trash to be hauled away by the City. Items that won’t be accepted include toxins such as paints, pesticides, batteries, tires or cleansers such as mineral spirits.
“The City can’t do it all and shouldn’t do it,” said Carlucci. “Everybody’s guilty. We’re all members of this community and we all have a responsibility to do our part to make Jacksonville better.”