Cleaning up the downtown core

A new initiative has been announced to help cleanup the downtown core and provide employment for marginalized people.

The Downtown Business Association is the driving force behind the project, which came together quite quickly. The DBA partnered with local businesses and the Boyle Street Community Services to launch Downtown Proud!, a solution to the litter problem in the city centre.

Five individuals have been hired to patrol a 30 block radius of downtown Edmonton and pick up litter. The group works five days a week for three hours a day for a wage of $12.00 an hour. Both groups are pleased with the result.

"It makes our city look a little better" team member Mark Wilson told Global News. "It gives me a chance to get out and do something for the community."

Funding for the project was provided almost entirely by the private sector.