Melbourne litterbugs warned ahead of Melbourne CBD cleaning blitz
Vomit, urine, graffiti, cigarette butts and syringes are just a handful of rubbish items targeted in a new cleaning blitz set to take place in Melbourne’s CBD. And the Lord Mayor has sent a stern warning to Melburnians who litter.
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Filth and graffiti will be blasted away in a cleaning blitz across Melbourne’s CBD.
Lord Mayor Sally Capp has implored Melburnians to respect the city, declaring thoughtless litterbugs wouldn’t rubbish their own backyards.
Construction site operators will also be put on notice to tidy up and problem-prone areas improved.
Cr Capp told the Sunday Herald Sun: “Too often our team have to clean vomit, urine, graffiti, and cigarette butts from our streets and public spaces.
“We work hard to keep our city clean, but we all need to do more,’’ she said.
“In coming weeks, our team will be organising a blitz to spruce up our city for the festive season.
“We’re looking into doing more pressure cleaning of the hotspot areas for filth and grime.
“We’re examining our collection schedule, ways to ensure construction sites are tidier, and projects to beautify problem areas.”
Hosier Lane, Swanston and Bourke streets are likely to be the focus of the city spruce-up, which will run day and night in addition to regular cleaning services that cost the council almost $15 million a year.
Grimy footpaths, dirty street furniture, graffiti, illegal bill posters and dumped syringes will be targeted.
The blitz comes after Melbourne City Council was slammed for not focusing on the basics, with critics saying rubbish, graffiti and homelessness were putting off shoppers and tourists.
A Sunday Herald Sun investigation also found Melbourne’s CBD was at risk of becoming an eyesore with landmark golden-era buildings covered in graffiti and decay after years of neglect.
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Cr Capp said making the city cleaner and more welcoming was a top priority for the council.
But sections of the public also needed greater civic pride.
“Everyone has a role to play and that’s why I want all Melburnians to do their bit to improve our city,’’ Cr Capp said.
“We want people to think about public spaces in Melbourne as they would their own backyard.
“Our street-cleaning crews operate 24 hours a day. We clean high-usage areas in the city multiple times per day.
“As the number of workers, visitors and residents continues to increase, we need people to take more pride in our city.
“This starts with Melburnians taking responsibility and not littering our parks, streets and waterways.”