New trash bins help keep Avenue of Roses clean

See what other activity took place, the day they unveiled the new trash containers in the Jade District …

Near one of the new trash bin in the Jade District, volunteers return to the Jade / APANO Multicultural Space.

Story and photos by David F. Ashton

With a focus on SE 82^nd Avenue of Roses, the Jade District Neighborhood Prosperity Initiative serves one of the most diverse districts in the city.

One of the outcomes of the Jade District Vision Plan was a recommendation that local businesses, and the community at large, would benefit from public trash receptacles and garbage pick up services along the avenue.

On June 3, that part of the plan was realized, with the unveiling of public trash cans. In conjunction with this, the district also held a volunteer-led street clean-up of the area, plucking trash from along the highway.

Out along SE 82^nd Avenue of Roses, many volunteers are participating in a street-side trash cleanup.

“Last year, the Portland City Council approved the budget to expand the Public Trash Program,” said City of Portland Bureau of Planning & Sustainability Assistant Program Specialist Alfredo Gonzalez. “For that expansion, they decided the Jade District to be the place to begin.”

The district didn’t have to apply for a grant; it was covered by the city under this program. The specific locations were selected by business owners and neighbors during the visioning sessions. Now there are 18 new trash receptacles in the Jade District, primarily along SE 82nd Avenue of Roses.

Jade District Manager Todd Struble and City of Portland Bureau of Planning & Sustainability Assistant Program Specialist Alfredo Gonzalez admire one of the new public trash receptacles.

“These containers will help keep areas in front of stores cleaner; we want to help businesses stay here and thrive, by providing this service,” Gonzalez East Portland News.

Almost more important than the containers themselves, Gonzalez observed, is that the City of Portland has contracted with a garbage hauler to service these refuse bins on a regular basis.

Inside the Jade/APANO Multicultural Space, visitors learn about recycling, composting, and trash sorting from City of Portland Bureau of Planning & Sustainability specialists Alicia Polacok and Wing Grabowski.

Admiring one of the trash containers, Jade District Manager Todd Struble said they were a meaningful improvement to the area. “In a way, this will beautify the neighborhood, keeping the streets cleaner, and improving the business experience – all while helping to make it feel safer, walking around.

“The mission for the Jade District is to fight displacement, and really support the people who are here,” Struble told East Portland News. “I think this is a good example of a project that was done the right way.”

Now, you know the story behind those new black trash containers, highlighted by colorful artwork, along SE 82^nd Avenue of Roses.

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