Roll up your sleeves and join the Great Kansas City Cleanup on Friday, April 22, and Saturday, April 23, as the entire city celebrates Earth Day.
Neighborhood associations, community groups, students, city staff and dozens of businesses will volunteer at litter and trash pickup events across the city, with support from multiple city departments such as KC Parks, Public Works, Neighborhood Services and KC Water.
There are two ways to help – join an already scheduled cleanup event, or organize your own cleanup event.
All the information you need to get started is at kcmo.gov/cleanup.
“As Kansas Citians, we take pride in our beautiful city – from our many fountains to our parks and boulevard system to the neighborhoods in which we live,” said 6th District Councilwoman Andrea Bough. “As we celebrate Earth Day and work together to preserve our planet, I can’t think of a better way than to come together as a community for the Great Kansas City Cleanup.”
“I am really excited for the clean up. I decided to get ours organized because my kids have started to really notice all the trash when we are out on our walks,” said Kate Calvert, a teacher and mother of two who is leading a volunteer cleanup effort along Shoal Creek. “I want to teach them that when they see a problem, they can’t just sit and wait for someone else to fix it.”
“Kansas City is a beautiful city,” 5th District Councilwoman Ryana Parks-Shaw said. “This Earth Day let’s all renew our commitment to keep Kansas City beautiful. Together we can.”
The citywide effort is also building momentum in several neighborhoods where teams of volunteers are preparing to make a difference.
“In the West Bottoms, we have a long-standing issue with trash discarded along roadways and illegal dumping, so Historic West Bottoms Association is very grateful for the leadership from the City to mobilize citizens from around the community to raise awareness about the issues and to address them with resources and volunteers,” said Bruce Holloway, president of the Historic West Bottoms Association. “We conduct semi-annual cleanups in the bottoms and the city has been a great partner in past years. The increased focus this year is very welcome.”
Litter cleanup and picking up trash in our parks and along our roads and highways is a priority for residents and something the City is working hard to address. The cleanup is bigger and better this year with more departments and employees pitching in to help. But efforts to pick up trash and debris in Kansas City are ongoing.
A few examples of our progress include:
Neighborhood Cleanup Assistance Programs that support neighborhood and civic groups devoted to removing blight and controlling litter
·Biannual Hard to Recycle events open to all KCMO residents wanting to get rid of items that are not allowed in normal trash pickup like electronics and household hazardous waste
·An increase in budget to the bulky item collection program to allow more pickup appointments in areas that need it most
·Allocating $600,000 in the 2023 budget for additional trash and litter cleanups through a jobs program for those formerly incarcerated and homeless people currently staying at shelters
·A more aggressive street-cleaning strategy and more street sweepers on the way campaign which includes an easier way for residents to request street sweeping via the myKCMO app
·New partnerships with organizations like Downtown Council and the Kansas City Crime Commission to deploy cleanup crews along our highways
·The KC Parks Ambassadors Program which focuses on keeping our parks and parklands clean and free of trash and debris through ongoing volunteer cleanups
·Organized seasonal cleanup events by KC Water along city waterways
