The Great Arkansas Cleanup kicked off Sept. 1, and with the statewide cleanup initiative heading into its second month, Keep El Dorado Beautiful is encouraging local residents to get involved.
The annual event will end Oct. 31.
Janis Van Hook, president of KEB, said El Dorado residents may join the rest of the state with individual cleanups or by coordinating or volunteering for community cleanups.
"We, as KEB, are asking everyone in the city of El Dorado to do something to improve your yards, block or neighborhood or wherever you would like during the month of October," Van Hook said.
Individuals and groups are also asked to contact KEB and report the time that was spent during any beautification or cleanup activities in the city.
The information is forwarded to the Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission (KABC), who tracks cleanup activities around the state and keeps the information on file.
Submitting such information to the KABC helps KEB and the city of El Dorado maintain good standing with the KABC and Keep America Beautiful, KEB members have said.
The information may also be used in consideration for grants and other resources.
During the Great Arkansas Cleanup in 2021, more than 7,200 volunteers clocked nearly 42,000 hours in communities across the state, the KABC reported.
Further, 219 tons of litter were collected from Arkansas roadways waterways, parks and public spaces.
Cash incentives for volunteer groups
The call for residents to join the Great Arkansas Cleanup comes just months ahead of plans by KEB to reboot its cash incentive program to encourage cleanup teams/volunteers to participate in quarterly cleanups that cover the city's four wards.
For two years -- 2018 and 2019 --, KEB worked with El Dorado City Council members to coordinate community cleanups in their respective wards.
Volunteers who registered a team with KEB and met all of the checkboxes to participate in the cleanups received $300 cash rewards, thanks to a donation from Clean Harbors.
In late 2019, Dan Roblee, general manager of Clean Harbors and a member of KEB, said the company would not be able to offer the cash incentives in 2020.
As KEB explored options for other incentives, the ward cleanups were called off in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
On Sept. 23, the El Dorado City Council held two specially-called meetings and comments by Council Member Willie McGhee near the end of the first meeting led to the announcement about KEB's plans to re-launch the cash incentive program.
McGhee referred to a vote the council had taken several minutes earlier to approve a funding request of $11,194.50 to repaint and add new letters to existing wayfinding signs that were purchased by the city a decade ago.
Thirty-one signs will be installed to direct visitors around town in time for the 49th annual Arkansas Governor's Conference on Tourism, which will be hosted in El Dorado in late February.
The funding request was recommended by the El Dorado Works Board, who administers the one-cent city sales tax for economic development, municipal infrastructure and quality-of-life projects.
The EWB approved the request Aug. 30 and forwarded the matter to the city for consideration.
On Sept. 23, McGhee had called for organization and cooperation among council members in order to help local residents and he referenced the funding request.
"The lady (EWB member Sara Coffman) just ask for $11,000. We want downtown signs ... but we ought to want our whole city to be able to, if they make a wrong turn, (to look) nice and not to be overgrown," McGhee said.
"We have serious issues that we need to be discussing also and we all need to be a part of these discussions," he continued.
Council Member Dianne Hammond clarified that the 31 wayfinding signs will extend beyond downtown El Dorado and will be erected throughout the city.
The signs will include points of interests and facilities all over town, including the El Dorado Municipal Auditorium, the Murphy Arts District, Downtown El Dorado, Mystic Creek Golf Course, etc.
"I was talking about if they took a wrong turn, maybe over in Ward 3 or an area that's grown up ... so even if they go down a back road, we want to make sure that it at least looks decent and weeds (are) not hitting them in the face and trash and stuff," said McGhee, who represents Ward 3.
Hammond and Council Member Paul Choate pointed out that KEB is aware of the upcoming governor's conference.
The group, along with city workers, are preparing to mobilize at the first of the year to make sure the city, a first-time host of the AGCT, is presentable and inviting to the hundreds of guests who are expected to attend.
Hammond, a member of KEB and a committee that is coordinating the conference, said several volunteer groups -- youth, churches, businesses and a local family -- have stepped up in recent months to adopt city streets and keep them litter-free.
"We're hoping we get many more before the conference comes here," Hammond said.
She also reported that during KEB's regular, monthly meeting on Sept. 19, members learned that Clean Harbors will donate money, not only to reboot the quarterly cleanups, but also to help spruce up the city for the governor's conference.
This time, Hammond said, the cash incentive program will be geared more toward youth groups with cleanup teams of 10 or more.
"Because that's how adults learn what to do," Hammond said.
KEB has long stressed the importance of reaching out to children and local schools with the belief that children will share what they learn and prompt their families to join efforts by KEB to build a sustainable cleanup campaign focusing on litter reduction, recycling and beautification in the city.
To register or volunteer for cleanup activities with KEB or KAB or for more information, call Van Hook at 870-918-2706 or Hammond at 870-866-0111.
Also, visit the KEB Facebook page or KAB website at [email protected].