McKeesport cleanup held as competition

The three teams combined to pick up 83 bags of garbage in the city.

McKeesport held a community cleanup contest during the last week of August and Labor Day Weekend as part of an initiative to pick up litter throughout the city.

The city partnered with Build N Block, a hip hop social work group, to recruit volunteers for the beautification effort.

Volunteers were split into three color-coded teams: red, green and gold.

The gold team — which was put together by the nonprofit organization Another Shoulder — collected 40 bags of trash, placing first in the contest. The team consisted of City Administrator Tom Maglicco, Another Shoulder Chairman Larry Bridges and volunteer Camille Herriott, among others.

The band of volunteers cleaned up in McKeesport’s sixth and seventh wards, including on the Ridge Street stairs and along Willow Street.

Maglicco credited Bridges and Another Shoulder for the gold team’s victory.

“So Another Shoulder took the win for this month,” Councilwoman Amber Webb said during Wednesday’s meeting.

The red team, which included Webb, Mayor Michael Cherepko and other volunteers, finished in second with 29 bags. They picked up along the Jenny Lind Street corridor near Federal, Butler and Evans streets, as well as Stewart, Meadow, Washington and Jefferson streets and a part of Crawford Village.

“We thought we did great; we thought we were killing it,” Webb said.

The green team, which included Councilman Keith Soles, Mayor’s Assistant Jen Vertullo, McKeesport resident Anna Lisa Haughwout and others, gathered 14 bags of trash. They cleaned up at the parklet on the corner Patterson Avenue and Myer Boulevard, along with Hartman Street, Eden Park Boulevard, Evans Avenue and Grandview Avenue.

Another community cleanup is expected to take place in the coming weeks with two additional teams of volunteers participating.

Also at the meeting, council approved a contract for Betters Company to demolish nine blighted structures on Flagler and Sixth streets for no more than $119,500.

City of McKeesport Mayor’s Office