Clean up day in Oak Park
By Sophia Fischer sfischer@theacorn.com

Oak Park leaders are encouraging residents to keep the community beautiful by pitching in to help pick up trash off streets and trails.

Oak Park's third annual cleanup day is from 8 to 11 a.m. Sat., May 3. Volunteers may show up at any of the meeting points, which include Medea Creek Middle School, the Oak Park Library, Red Oak Elementary School and the school district administration building. Gloves and trash bags will be available.

The first two cleanup days were primarily supported by school children. Cleanup day organizers Mike Green, an Oak Park Municipal Advisory Council member, and Jeri Edwards, a North Ranch resident, would like to see more adults participate.

Edwards, who often hikes in Oak Park, always carries a plastic bag with her to hold trash that she picks up along sidewalks, streets and trails. She became concerned as the amount of discarded garbage throughout the area increased over the years, and she appealed to the Oak Park Municipal Advisory Council. The cleanup day program was established, resulting in the collection of hundreds of bags of refuse during the first two events.

"Adults enjoy the local paths. If they appreciate what we have in Oak Park, we need their help to keep it clean," Green said.

Walking through the community, Green has noticed several areas where trash tends to accumulate, such as the shrubbery along Oak Hills Drive. The beer bottles, newspapers, wrappers and other garbage don't come only from passers-by but from Waste Management garbage trucks. On windy days Green has seen trash blow out of the top of the trucks or from cans as they are lifted and dumped into the truck.

"Unfortunately, there's not a lot we can do about that other than to get out there and pick it up," Green said.

Cleanup day is held in conjunction with the annual beautification day, when residents can dispose of bulky items, residential yard waste, wood and lumber, metal items, cardboard and electronics. Discards may be brought to Oak Park High School from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

For more information on cleanup day, call (818) 8898485.

For more information on beautification day, call (805) 658-4320.