By Adam Smith

The North Jefferson News



The Gardendale Beautification Commission is inviting residents to help clean up the city next month.

On April 12, the commission will host a clean-up day from 8 to 11:30 a.m. Volunteers will depart from the Gardendale Civic Center and will focus on various locations in Gardendale.

“We would love to have anybody interested in beautifying the city to come help us on that day,” said commission member Hazel Butts.

She said the areas that are in most need of cleaning are Shady Grove, Newfound, Tarrant and New Castle roads. She said all of those areas are littered with bottles, cans, papers and other trash.

She said those areas, located on the outskirts of the city, may be polluted by people driving through the city and not by residents. She said additional enforcement of the city’s litter ordinance may persuade people to dispose of their trash properly.

“If a policeman could write a few tickets and get into some pocket books, that’s what we need,” she said. “It’s discouraging when you pick it up one day and it’s back the next day.”

Butts said she has been involved with city clean-up days for several years. “There’s never a day that goes by that I don’t pick up trash from around the schools,” said Butts, who is also a Gardendale Crossing Guard. “Stuff falls out of people’s cars when their kids are getting out. I can’t just leave it laying there.”