PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Saturday, July 16, 2011                                                        

CONTACT: (415) 554-6926

                                                                                                                                                             

COMMUNITY CLEAN-UP IN THE BAYVIEW TEAMS UP PUBLIC WORKS AND THE SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

Mayor, Supervisor Cohen, DPW, and volunteers green Bayview neighborhoods

San Francisco, CA – Today Mayor Edwin M. Lee, the San Francisco 49ers, the Department of Public Works (DPW), community leaders, and over 300 enthusiastic volunteers gathered in the City’s Bayview neighborhoods to lend a hand to several cleaning and greening projects that focused on sustainable environmental improvements and the sprucing up of the southeast community’s public spaces. 



 “The Community Clean Team events are a call to action for residents and neighbors to come together to green our neighborhoods and make lasting improvements,” said Mayor Lee. “By working together, we make our beautiful city more livable and continue to build upon partnerships that help improve the quality of life in the Bayview and throughout the City.”  



Throughout the morning, teams cared for street trees, created pathways, landscaped sidewalks and public spaces, broke ground on gardening projects, painted over graffiti, and helped to clean up litter and debris in and around Candlestick Park. Volunteers also helped clean up  illegal dumping hotspots in the light-industrial areas of the Bayview and around the slough at Yosemite Avenue as a part of DPW’s Don’t Leave it on the Sidewalk campaign, where city resources are often devoted to cleaning up tons of illegally disposed litter and debris.



“Coming out to volunteer for your community is tremendously important, and you can see the difference that is made when residents of the Bayview work together to make positive neighborhood improvements,” said District Ten Supervisor Malia Cohen.



The July event is the sixth of eight Clean Team events that inspire residents to work together clean up their neighborhoods. The monthly events rotate San Francisco supervisorial districts and have brought together thousands of volunteers this year alone to do planting and greening projects, remove graffiti and pick up litter along the public rights-of-way.



 “We see great value in providing opportunities for residents to join together with us to spruce up our neighborhoods,” said Ed Reiskin, Director of the Department of Public Works. “It is essential that we continue to foster these partnerships so that we create safer and more inviting streetscapes while building community.”  



The Bayview Clean Team event united several community partners in order to make the volunteer event a meaningful experience, including the San Francisco 49ers who handed out 49er merchandise to volunteers; the 49ers’ concessionaires Centerplate who provided lunch; Recology whose staff grilled and served lunch; the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority (SFMTA); San Francisco Housing Authority; and the Office of District Ten Supervisor Malia Cohen.



Along with the planting of dozens of trees and the landscaping work, this morning’s cleanup allocated teams of volunteers to embark on tackling some of the neighborhood’s unique challenges: illegal sidewalk dumping. The Bayview disproportionately accounts for much of the tonnage hauled away by DPW in the form of discarded household debris, furniture and other bulky items. Over 10,000 tons are picked up annually citywide from sidewalks, alleyways, open spaces, and at dead ends of streets.



“Teaming up with the good neighbors in the Bayview is the only way that the city will be able to get ahead of the illegal dumping epidemic,” said Mohammed Nuru, Deputy Director for Operations for the Department of Public Works. “Residents can help curb illegal dumping by reporting sidewalk dumping to 311 and take advantage of free bulky item collection services offered by the recycling and garbage company.”



Another aspect of the event included the Gigantic 3 Program, which provides free bulky item drop-off service for residents to get rid of unwanted household items. The service generally collect tons of unwanted items and debris throughout the morning, including green waste, appliances, mattresses, electronics, and non recyclable waste like Styrofoam, ceramics, and light bulbs. There was also free document shredding and Goodwill is on hand to accept donated goods. More information about bulky item collection and the Community Clean Team events can be found at www.sfdpw.org

“The San Francisco 49ers has always considered themselves an integral part of the City of San Francisco and the Bayview community. We value the efforts of the Department of Public Works, the young people who volunteer their time and the people who support them, as they work to make their neighborhood a place to be proud of,” said Larry Minasian, Director of Stadium Operations with the San Francisco 49ers.

 DPW is responsible for the care and maintenance of San Francisco’s streets and much of its infrastructure. The department cleans and resurfaces streets; plants and maintains City street trees; designs, constructs and maintains city-owned facilities; inspects streets and sidewalks; constructs curb ramps; removes graffiti from public property; and partners with the diverse neighborhoods in San Francisco to provide stellar cleaning and greening services. 

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