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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1983-07-07-CCC-rpt.pdf REPORT TO THE BOARD OF SELECTMEN ON THE SPRING CLEAN-UP CAMPAIGN On May 2, 1983, the Board of Selectmen appointed the undersigned to be Co-chairmen of a Spring Clean-up Committee for Lexington The Committee was formed in response to a letter from Governor Dukakis to Town Manager Robert Hutchinson in which the Town was asked to join in a grass roots campaign to keep the Commonwealth looking its best by picking up trash and litter The following is a brief report on the results of the clean up effort The Clean-up Campaign was organized for the most part by making tele- phone calls to leaders of community organizations and soliciting their sup- port With the valued help of Conservation Director Clifford Prentiss, we informed these leaders of the many areas of conservation and other public lands in the Town that were in need of clean-up and we asked them to choose the locations on which they would like to work Because of the late start in getting the campaign going and of many competing events in May and early June, it did not prove feasible to fix on a particular day or week-end during May as a focus for the "de-littering" efforts Instead, we encouraged each organization to pick a date convenient to its members for doing the job Through the generosity of the American Legion, we were able to provide plas- tic bags to all organizations needing them. We cannot at this time specify exactly which areas were "de-littered" as a result of the campaign This is because some of the schools were still in- volved in the work as this report was being written and because a number of the larger areas, such as Whipple Hill, were partially but not completely cleaned up We do know that volunteer groups worked effectively on most of the areas designated by the Conservation Director and that a number of additional iii' roadsides and neighborhoods were also spruced up ) 1 i i J �` I • ` ` J r, � ill, 4- Lratt Report Clean-up Campaign -2- We were pleased by the universally favorable response which we got from all of the organizations we contacted Although some were unable to partici- pate this year because of weather and scheduling problems, all expressed sup- port for the concept of an annual Town clean-up effort We were particularly heartened by the strong support given to the campaign by the Campfire Groups and by the enthusiastic participation of the Pre-School PTA, the Council on Aging and several family and neighborhood groups We are happy to report that a majority of Lexington's public schools participated in the clean-up of school grounds and adjacent areas We commend in particular the Estabrook and Frank- lin Schools for their work on nearby conservation lands Overall, we believe that the Clean-up Campaign has been successful in involving diverse groups in tidying up Town lands , in laying the groundwork for future clean-up efforts and getting rid of a lot of trash Through the good offices of Selectman Sacco, the Lexington Chamber of Com- merce designed and printed a "Litter Hurts" poster which was distributed to schools, retailers and other display points prior to "Discovery in Lexington" Our publicity efforts also were aided by the extensive coverage provided by the Lexington Minute-Man Next Year - We recommend that the Board consider instituting a similar campaign in 1984 - While the Governor proposed May as "clean-up month" this year, we suggest that future efforts be scheduled either before or immediately after Patriots ' Day (By May, new foliage hides a lot of litter ) - Organizationally, a small citizens committee would be useful in identifying and mobilizing various civic organizations The citizens committee would be assisted by the Conservation Director, Director of Public Works, Recreation Coordinator and other town officials J -3- Draft Report July 7 , 1983 Clean-up Campaign - We recommend that a member of the School Committee or a senior adminis- trator be involved in next year's campaign from the earliest stages - We suggest discussing the clean-up campaign with the School Committee/ Superintendent by October so that longer-term activities might be coordinated with the campaign For example, perhaps the Chamber of Commerce or another local group might coordinate with the school administration and the art departments in sponsoring a poster contest in the month or two before the cam- paign The best poster(s) could be selected for reproduction and town-wide distribution with prizes for the top designers - We recommend that the citizens committee be activated in March of 1984 Respectfully submitted, John C Eddison John F McLaughlin