Latest news with #SanFranciscoDepartmentofPublicWorks
Epoch Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
San Francisco Launches New ‘Power Washing' Street Cleaning Initiative
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie has announced a new initiative to increase neighborhood street cleaning through a 'power washing program' in high-traffic commercial areas. The plan is in partnership with and backed by $3 million in funding from Avenue Greenlight, a new philanthropically funded community-driven 'It's one of the several public-private partnerships we're launching to help clean our streets, support our neighborhoods, and prioritize the long-term economic growth of our city, and it works with what we've already put into motion,' Lurie said at a May 22 announcing the partnership. Trucks and manual street cleaners will target the Mission, Sunset, Tenderloin, Richmond, Chinatown, North Beach, and Fillmore neighborhoods, and provide additional cleaning during critical afternoon hours. 'We have to take care of the basics. That means clean and safe streets,' the mayor said at the press conference. 'If our neighborhoods feel dirty or neglected, people spend less time there. But when our streets are clean, when they are vibrant and cared for, people come out, they stay, they shop, they believe in the city again.' According to a , the partnership will be developed with support from the San Francisco Department of Public Works. It will expand on the department's existing street cleaning operations, which currently include a weekly deep-clean that power washes sidewalks, removes graffiti, and flushes roadways. Related Stories 5/9/2025 4/21/2025 Additionally, Public Works' Block Sweepers initiative employs street cleaners to clean more than 700 blocks in busy commercial areas and mechanical street sweepers that cover a collective 150,000 miles of curbside lanes annually. Avenue Greenlight President Maryo Mogannam said at the press conference that while San Francisco and Avenue Greenlight can come in and clean the streets, he really wants to inspire the citizens of the city to help keep the streets clean. 'It's easier to keep the garbage off the street than it is for us to come clean up after you,' he said.
CBS News
28-01-2025
- General
- CBS News
San Francisco residents take part in projects to beautify neighborhoods
Volunteers in San Francisco are taking matters into their own hands to spruce up their neighborhoods. Cynthia Gissler has been working to change an area of Lombard Street, where cars coming off the 101 and the Golden Gate Bridge enter the city. "I just want it to be a peaceful place, welcoming, and I want people to feel welcome in this beautiful city," said Gissler. She found some 25 volunteers to help including some or her youngest neighbors. "I'm planting trees," said Rayaal Wada. "It's really fun to help out the environment and make the world a better place," said Amina Wada. Gissler and other volunteers initiated the project three years ago by getting the city and others, like the Presidio Trust, involved in installing native and drought-resistant plants. "I was never concerned about how long it would take. I kept telling them, 'I'm going to live till 120 if it takes many years, I'll just keep working on this,'" said Gissler. "These are crazy times that we're living in right now. So, participating in this makes you feel like you are helping to make it better in San Francisco," said neighborhood volunteer Sherry Archer. Residents looking to improve their neighborhoods have different avenues to get help including reaching out to their district supervisor. New city programs, like the "Love Our Neighborhoods" permit and "Love Our City" beautification days, are also making various projects easier to get approved. "We want people to work with us, though, not get frustrated as we're trying to make sure that things are kept safe. But we really are trying to streamline this, this process for people to improve their neighborhoods," said Rachel Gordon of the San Francisco Department of Public Works. Smaller pocket projects like installing benches, lights, and little free libraries, are now easier to get green-lit by the city. For Cynthia Gissler, these community-driven projects are key. "Find the one thing you can do in your neighborhood to make the world a more beautiful place," said Gissler. It's every day residents creating change, sometimes one plant, or project at a time, that can make the difference between urban blight and beautification.
