Spring cleanup seeking volunteers
WAYNESBURG – Waynesburg Borough plans to take its annual spring cleanup to another level this year by organizing a volunteer effort to rid the borough of litter.
The borough will hold its annual spring cleanup May 5-7, during which residents can bring unwanted household items to the borough street department on First Street.
On the final day – Saturday – it will hold what Mayor Duncan Berryman, in announcing the program, called “The Waynesburg Trash Bash.”
Berryman outlined plans to organize volunteers for a boroughwide litter cleanup that day. The borough will provide volunteers with vests, gloves and bags and send them out to pick up litter, he said. Berryman hopes to get the word out to local church groups, Boy Scouts and others to help with the effort.
He also plans to attend a meeting of Waynesburg Merchants Guild to get its members involved. Councilman Mark Fischer said he will provide water for volunteers.
Litter is a big problem in the borough, Berryman said.
“If you go through some of the alleys, it’s pretty rough,” he said.
Because the event will be held on a Saturday, Berryman said, there will be less traffic than normal. The borough also will try to get a road sign to notify motorists of the event and urge them to drive with caution.
“Hopefully, if we have a good day, we can turn this into an annual event,” he said.
As part of the annual spring cleanup, residents can bring unwanted items to the street department between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. Thursday and Friday and between 7 a.m. and noon Saturday.
This year, the borough will accept tires. There will be a $2 fee for each regular tire and a $3 fee for each light truck tire.
The borough will not accept electronics, paint and hazardous materials.
Items with freon must be tagged indicating the gas was removed.
The borough also will pick up items at a resident’s home for $25 for half a truck load and $50 for a full truck load. For pick-up service residents should call the borough office.
In a related matter, council agreed to bid the borough residential refuse collection contract again with Franklin Township. The current five-year contract with Advanced Disposal expires at the end of the year. The municipalities have jointly bid the contract for a number of years expecting to get a better rate for customers.