Councillors Evert Botha, Terra Lennox-Zepp, and Charlene Miller at a Community Clean-Up event during a previous year. (file photo/paNOW Staff)

By Alison Sandstrom

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Spring cleaning continues in the face of the pandemic, although COVID-19 will influence how annual community clean-ups in Wards 1 and 3 are conducted. Meanwhile, the City of Prince Albert will not hold events as part of Pitch-In Week, but the mayor encouraged residents to do their part, from a safe distance, to tidy up the city.

Ward 3 Coun. Evert Botha told paNOW he contacted the Saskatchewan Health Authority for guidelines about how Community Clean-up could be run safely this year. The resulting recommendations have changed some of the protocols of the event but not its spirit.

“It’s a sense of community pride,” he said. “We know that a cleaner community is safer, a lot more secure. During this process people get to become better neighbours by working together to ensure that their blocks, back lanes and streets are clean.”

Two meters will be maintained between people attending the drop-off site and volunteers will ensure there are no more than 10 people in the area at a time. Botha noted there will also be an ample supply of hand sanitizer for volunteers.

Unlike previous years there will be no pick-ups, but Botha said he hoped residents would still be able to find a way to transport larger items to the drop-off site.

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“Hopefully residents will also team together and assist their neighbor if there’s a fridge or a mattress or whatever in their back lane,” he said.

Ward 3’s drop off point will be accessible from Fourth Avenue East. There will be bins for yard waste, general garbage, metal and appliances and recyclables.

Coun. Charlene Miller is in her tenth year of organizing an annual community clean-up event for Ward 1. She said she’s disappointed area schools in the won’t be participating this year, but is still looking forward to the event.

“It’s very unfortunate because the school kids always did a fabulous job for our community,” she said.

The drop-off point for Ward 1 is St. Michael’s Church parking lot, where dumpsters will be divided for yard waste, general garbage and metal.

“It’s important to make sure that we clean our yards each and every year and get ready for summer,” Miller said.

Ward 1 Community Clean-up will run from May 4 to 9. To volunteer, contact Charlene Miller at 306-981-3636

Ward 3 Community Clean-up will run from May 7 to 10. To volunteer, contact Evert Botha at 306-980-5387.

Speaking on the decision not to hold organized events with food and teams as part of Pitch-In Week, Mayor Greg Dionne said that doesn’t mean people can’t still tidy-up the community, as long as they do it alone or only with members of their household.

“We can’t have those kinds of gatherings anyone, so we’ve cancelled that part of Pitch-In,” he said. “But we’re still encouraging people to get out there and clean up our community.”

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alison.sandstrom@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @alisandstrom