HARRISBURG, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker says her 13-week program to “deep clean” the city is on track to beautify every block this summer.
Parker delivered a progress report to the Pennsylvania Press Club during a lobbying visit to Harrisburg on Monday, as the program began its fourth week of operations.
She says the work, so far, has defied expectations. As of Monday, Parker said, crews had cleaned 4,000 residential blocks and commercial corridors, putting the initiative on track to achieve its target of 17,000 blocks by the end of August.
“I heard people say, ‘Thirteen weeks? She’s going to clean every block? She’s setting herself up for failure,’” the mayor said.
“I don’t apologize for being bold, for reaching high. If we reach for the moon and get the stars, at least Philadelphia will see that we used every resource, every tool, to address the issues.”
She said she had used the “tool of convening” different agencies to get results.
“There is nothing that we cannot do if we put our mind and our resources together,” she said.
The effort relies, each day, on 130 workers — plus dozens of pieces of small and large equipment — from push brooms to trash compactors.
The Philadelphia Parking Authority has also towed away 217 unregistered vehicles from those blocks.
The Department of Licenses and Inspections is sealing vacant properties, and the Community Life Improvement Project is cleaning graffiti, but updated information was not available for those efforts.