Media Clips

CLEAN SWEEP
New effort launched to keep Algiers clean

The Times-Picayune •Allen Powell II • West Bank bureau
Thursday, September 24, 2009

The Algiers Development District and the Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff's Office have joined forces to spruce up Algiers in an effort to improve quality of life and reduce crime.

At a press conference Friday, the two entities announced the start of the "Keep Algiers Clean" initiative, a partnership aimed at reducing litter and blight in Algiers. Inmates from the Orleans Parish Prison will spend two days a week in Algiers collecting trash and removing illegal signs on public property. In addition, the inmates are cleaning and repainting the two bridges at the intersection of Holiday Drive and Gen. de Gaulle Drive, said state Rep. Jeff Arnold, the chairman of the development district.

"I cannot stress how important the Sheriff's Office has been," Arnold said. "We have been delighted with the response we have received."

Arnold said the development district, which is paid for through a special taxing district, sees the clean-up campaign as a good way to drive economic development in Algiers. Businesses want to operate in clean communities and residents want to live in clean neighborhoods, Arnold said. In addition, officials noted that cleaner communities often have less crime because criminals recognize that they are well-cared for. Arnold said that the inmates began doing the litter sweeps in August, and the work on the bridges also has begun.

Sheriff Marlin Gusman said his office has a long history of doing one-time massive cleanups in communities, but he is excited about this new permanent venture in Algiers. Gusman said that with one-time campaigns, people often get discouraged when they see litter return within a month. He said his office is willing to work with any community group to provide a similar service.

"I really hope we can do this sort of thing in other parts of our community," Gusman said.

The development district pays the Sheriff's Office about $1,000 a month to handle the cleanup and covers the cost of the deputies required to watch the inmate crews, Gusman said. Arnold noted that the development district considered hiring a private company to provide the same service but discovered that it would cost roughly three times as much.

City Council members Jackie Clarkson, James Carter and Arnie Fielkow attended the kick-off and echoed Arnold's sentiments about how much of a boon the clean-up campaign will be for the area.

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Allen Powell II can be reached at apowell@timespicayune.com and 504.826.3793.