SWEEPING
BVNA Sidewalk Sweeping
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By mail: BVNA, PO BOX 63955, Philadelphia PA 19147
- Current Program Status: Active!
- Current Frequency: Monthly, then 2x month in summer 🧹🧹 ✨
- Funding Need for 2024:
$16,000 +
($1,600 per sweep x 10 sweeps at one per month, Mar--Dec, is the minimum commitment required to maintain the program).
2024 Goal (updated monthly)
Since 2018, we have taken a neighborhood-wide approach to out street litter issue, by launching a fundraising campaign to cover the cost of paid sidewalk and curb sweeping in our neighborhood. The program was funded entirely by donations.
Clean streets are healthy streets — they attract visitors and customers; reduce crime, disease, and stress; improve respiratory health; unclog our storm drains; and restore a sense of neighborhood pride.
We value the existing efforts by many neighbors to sweep up the sidewalk in front of homes and businesses, and even pitching in to clean up surrounding blocks. Unfortunately, particularly in higher-traffic or problem areas, it was not enough – the volume of litter on those blocks simply outpaced volunteer capacity.
BVNA regularly heard from residents that litter is their primary quality of life concern. In response, BVNA has partnered with ACAM — a woman-owned, minority-owned business whose mission is to provide employment opportunities to returning citizens, and a service already used in nearby Queen Village and South Street Headhouse District — to sweep the curbs and sidewalks of our numbered streets (6th-11th and Passyunk), and cross streets (Bainbridge, Fitzwater, Catharine, Christian, Carpenter) within our borders, which tend to experience the highest amount of foot traffic. By taking a neighborhood-wide approach to our litter issue, we are able to improve the quality of life in our entire community, leverage cost savings via a bulk group rate, and ensure equal attention to blocks including any problem areas. Most of us walk the length of our neighborhood, and would like to take pride in seeing it remain litter-free!
2018 was our inaugural year of sweeping. With your help, we were able to reach our goal, which allowed us to sweep every other week, from April to December 2018. Workers swept up and removed 849 bags or 10.61 tons worth of litter from our neighborhood.
The program was paused during the winter, while we worked to re-establish the necessary reserves to re-launched the program and perform this service again in 2019. Throughout 2019, we swept every other week, the day after trash day, from March through December.
Each year, if we are able to hit our goal — we will be able to sweep regularly in fair weather, and continue monthly throughout the winter months. We hope you can partner with us in making that a reality. With your support, we will be able to resume and maintain this program.
This program is unique in being 100% donation powered! All funds are used to pay ACAM while supporting their mission of providing employment history, mentorship and opportunities to those in need, returning citizens, and those in recovery. Help us sustain these opportunities while beautifying our neighborhood! BVNA is a 501(c)(3) and tax receipts are available upon request.