Love Your Block 2023

1. Identify a location:
   • parks
   • streets and sidewalks
   • vacant lots, or
   • other City-owned property.
2. Choose a project:
   • trash cleanup
   • sidewalk and street cleanup
   • park revitalization, or
   • flower planting and mulching 
3. Plan with a team:
   • Talk to your neighbors and recruit interested residents to help plan your cleanup. Consider hosting a neighborhood meeting to discuss details and divide up responsibilities.
   • Have a designated group leader to be the point of contact for Civic Organizing.
4. Request tools and support: 
   • Use our form to submit your site request and request to borrow tools by April 5, 2023, at 5 p.m.. 
   • The Office of Civic Organizing has the following tools available for neighborhood cleanups: gloves, trash pickers, brooms, rakes, big shovels, hand trowels, dust pans, sharps disposal containers, bags, and more.
   • Based on your location, identify a spot for trash pickup:
     • For streets and sidewalks: trash should be left curbside at an intersection identified in your sign-up form.
     • For Boston Parks: trash should be next to park trash receptacles in a visible location from the road.
     • For private property: use private dumpsters or normal private trash disposal for the location.
5. Spread the word:
   • Create a flyer that can be emailed, shared on social media, and printed out to be dropped on doorsteps.
   • Recruit volunteers:
     • Share the flyer with your network and invite neighbors to come join the cleanup.
     • Invite local neighborhood associations and civic groups to come and to share the invitation with their members.
   • If any volunteers sign up for your site using our general interest sign up form, we will send you their details ahead of time. 
6. Day of logistics:
   • Arrive early to the cleanup and meet OCO team to coordinate drop-off.
   • Consider offering coffee, water, or refreshments for the volunteers and having a sign-up form so that you can follow up with them later.
   • Assign groups of 2-3 people to focus on different areas or different tasks.
   • Be sure to count the tools before and after the cleanup to ensure that no items are lost or left behind.

HOST A SITE

Looking to get involved with a cleanup that's being organized in your neighborhood? Sign up as a volunteer and we will connect you with a Love Your Block site in your neighborhood once all locations have been finalized. 

VOLUNTEER