City workers, volunteers and people from various organizations have been cleaning up and beautifying the downtown area of Mansfield for the past 11 consecutive years, City Program Coordinator Kim Hildreth said.
“It’s actually been 18 years with a two year break in-between, but technically it has been about 11 years,” she said. “Operation Clean Sweep is a litter cleanup of the downtown area to get volunteers involved to be a part of getting the downtown ready for all of the festivals and activities that are going to be taking place.”
Hildreth said Tuesday’s cleanup and planting of flowers is also about educating the public and volunteers about the importance of litter prevention.
“We want to educate the people on the importance of not littering and how that does affect not just the aesthetics,” she said. “What many people find when they help out with litter cleanups is that all the stuff along the curb ends up going into our storm drains, which ends up going into our water; so it’s really a water quality issue.”
In addition to litter being an environmental issue it is also an economic issue, Hildreth explained.
“Whenever there is litter and debris throughout the community, it decreases property values,” she said. “It also discourages people from coming and visiting; or businesses, they don’t want to come here, it truly is economic.”
About four years ago, Hildreth said, when the city budget was in constraints, employees were asked if they wanted to participate in the downtown clean up. Some employees have even continued to bring in their own perennials to help put their personal touch on sprucing up downtown. Some continue weeding throughout the summer.
Home Depot donated eight flats of flowers to the city for the Operation Clean Sweep program, Hildreth said. “The employees donate the money and the labor.”
The downtown areas which were cleaned were First Street to Walnut Street and as far as Sixth Street. The alleys in-between those areas are also cleaned. The whole cleanup effort was a collaboration with Downtown Mansfield Inc., Mechanics Bank and other downtown businesses.
A group of seven girls from the Mansfield Police Departments Girls Youth Leadership Group through the Friendly House also helped to plant flowers outside the city building on the Diamond Street side. The group of girls meet twice a month for mentoring and prevention lessons, said Ginger Antrican, MPD and their advisor. The group also tries to do some sort of community service project on a monthly basis.
“It’s important for the girls to give back and to give back to their community in particular,” Antrican said. “They learn to give back, they learn to share and they learn that there’s somebody out there that may have it tougher that what they have. And it feels good to help. It’s a good life lesson.”
Jada Watkins, 12, a member of the group, said she enjoyed planting flowers and helping make downtown look better.
Jordan Watkins, 14, said she liked hanging out with her friends from the girls club and volunteering her time to help the community.
City Finance Director Lin Steward said her department started participating in the cleanup last year.
“It helps beautify the city area for everybody,” she said. “The finance department is stuck looking at numbers all the time so it’s nice to get outside and do something as a group that isn’t work. And after this hard winter, it’s nice to be out in this fresh air and help plant some living things.”
“Operation Clean Sweep is a litter cleanup of the downtown area to get volunteers involved to be a part of getting the downtown ready for all of the festivals and activities that are going to be taking place,” said Kim Hilldreth.
