PHOTOS: Portland Business District Trash Clean-Up


Photo: Jason E. Kaplan
SOLVE communications and outreach director Larissa Gordon provides instructions to volunteers before starting he clean-up of downtown Portland

Business groups rally behind effort to clean up the downtown.

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In conjunction with the Portland Business Alliance, the Portland Lodging Alliance, nonprofit SOLVE this week organized a few hundred volunteers to scour downtown Portland for trash and litter.  

The clean-up is part of business efforts to show the downtown is a safe and clean place to visit. It comes amidst declining foot traffic because of COVID-19 and continued protests.   

DSCF6961.jpgSOLVE volunteer Art Shapior (right) checks in other participants for the clean-up at the downtown Hilton.

Volunteers checked in at several city hotels. Many of the trash bags used were empty malt sacks supplied by local breweries. While participants collected all kinds of refuse, a contest was held to see who could collect the most cigarette butts. 

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SOLVE volunteers pick cigarette butts out of crevasses along SW Taylor St. 

DSCF6986.jpgWorking in teams, SOLVE volunteers spread out through Portland’s downtown neighborhoods.

While some volunteers worked alone, most seemed to stay with a partner or group.  Some brought their whole families.

DSCF7004.jpgFrom left to right, Kitty, Ella and Nathan Agoppe came down as a family to help clean up downtown.

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Roger Warren (right) cleans up litter in Lownsdale Square