City Cleanup Corps

12/31/2021

"Kredit Koncepts began in 2009 bringing credit awareness and education to minority owned businesses. There’s so many Americans who don’t know how to navigate through the financial industry. So we’re providing simple but effective tools on how to utilize credit, leverage it, achieve goals, accomplish tasks, and start businesses. This is information that many small businesses haven’t been given, in particular, minority owned businesses.

Knowledge really is power, and we’re giving them the power to move forward.

I always wanted to be directly involved in the communities impacted by what we do, and in business, image is essential. So it’s important that our locations are clean and professional. Harlem at 125th Street is a landmark location, which brings heavy traffic, and potentially a lot of mess. You can literally lose customers when they pull up to your establishment if it’s not up to par – I used to collect garbage from the sidewalks in front of my building every morning before opening.

So you can imagine the relief I felt when the City Cleanup Corps arrived. The CCC picked up trash, repainted buildings, and removed graffiti all through the neighborhood. What does it mean when, walking through your community on the way to work, you can see the sidewalks clean and buildings fresh? It’s a sense of pride, you know? A feeling that we have support, especially, you know, as small businesses; the fact that we’ve been paid attention to makes a real difference."

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12/31/2021

Maria had been working steadily, but then effects of the COVID-19 pandemic became severe. “I live with my sister and my mom and my son, and due to everything and the exposure getting worse and the numbers increasing, I did lose my job. We didn’t have any other steady work, so it was kind of hard at the time.”

“I was reached out to about The City Cleanup Corps. When I heard this was for the city I was very interested, especially because it’s about giving back to the community. I commute from Upper Manhattan, but I am seeing different parts of the city all the time, and different people working from all every borough. It’s actually a good feeling seeing all of us working together in unison to help each other.”

After working with the Corps, Maria is excited to continue this work and sees herself pursuing other opportunities with the city. “I am REALLY not a fan of littering, and that was what motivated me when I found out about CCC. When I found out about this opportunity too I ran to take it. Now I’m able to support my family, and I recommended to my sister that she joins the CCC as well!”
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12/30/2021

Malik was six weeks into a backpacking trip when COVID shut the world down. Soon after returning home to New York City he was introduced to the . “I had worked as a private gardener, but during the winter I was looking for something more long-term and meaningful. In the city, people often don’t often have access to green space. Once I saw the HORT’S mission, about connecting people and plants, I knew this was the place I belonged.“

Through the HORT, Malik was assigned to work with City Cleanup Corps. “We’re raking, mulching, weeding, and planting around the city. I love gardening on a professional level; this opportunity has really allowed me to start building a career. I am making higher level logistical decisions when it comes to planning, scheduling, ordering, budgeting, and managing teams of people.”

“I think that the CCC program really has played a pivotal role for me. Being involved in such a unique way with New York, doing urban greening, is just so important. I grew up in Manhattan knowing nothing about plants; I even had an aversion to dirt! But once I connected with horticulture, it has really changed the way I interact with the outdoors and the city, and makes me feel really purposeful in the work that I do.”
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12/29/2021

The CCC accomplished a great deal for New York City in 2021!

12/29/2021

In response to Hurricane Ida, the Corps was swiftly dispatched, removing over 72,000 bags of debris and directly assisting at over 160 homes, whose residents were unable to clear their damaged homes without help. My role at the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development includes management, recruitment, and coordination of the City Cleanup Corps, which represents thousands of workers across our city.

I helped source staff and resources, with support from the Mayor’s Office and interagency relationships. We obtained protective gear from New York City Emergency Management, who provided Tyvek vests, rubber gloves, and N95 masks. Within 24 hours of activation, our storm cleanup efforts were fully staffed and outfitted.

Neighbors saw us working and asked if we could help them too. Within a few days we were getting referrals from partner agencies and local electeds’ offices. We followed up by calling or visiting, doing what we could to help, even if it was just to move an appliance to their curbs.

Community members have shared how much it’s meant to them to have Corps members’ support as they recover from the storm. Being able to help uplift their spirits by doing the heavy lifting is what has meant so much to us.

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12/28/2021

12/28/2021

I’ve been with the Parks Departments for 20 years, and with Corps since April. I work here as a City Seasonal Aide, and I live in this area. I’ve seen a lot of the kids growing up, and then coming back with their own kids now. But it was totally different once COVID happened. People weren’t coming out, except for food. In my building, we helped the elderly, made sure they had whatever they needed. But people were afraid for a while.

The CCC kept me going throughout the year; I was working at the Hamilton Fish Pool when everything began to open up. It actually went pretty well! People were out again, doing what they had to do, wearing their masks. It was good to see my neighbors again.

I’m proud to be able to support my community this way. Coming out of all this, all of us are just trying to live day by day. It seems like everyday it’s getting a little better.
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12/28/2021

12/27/2021

This experience gave me a plan to move forward past the pandemic - I had just started college and was playing basketball on their team, but due to COVID our season got shut down, right after my 20th birthday. With college closed, I wanted to find a way to make some money for myself and for my family.

So that’s how I started here, and I’ve been working with the Corps for about seven months. It’s a lot of work, but I love to do it; neighborhoods have welcomed us with open arms, and people have started recognizing us and telling us that the parks look greener and cleaner! And I’ve made a couple of really good friends.

I get back to playing the sport I love when I go back to school in January, but I’ve been able to make some money, keep focusing on my goals, and help the city. I grew up in New York. This is my home; I actually think it’s a wonderful place.
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12/27/2021

12/25/2021

Although COVID-19 completely changed the landscape of business in New York City, our actual landscape remained constant. “The city parks were still being utilized.” explains Parks Supervisor Chris Clay. “The subway was like a ghost town, but the parks were one of the few spaces that people could come out and enjoy in any capacity.”

Chris works with District Three, one of the largest districts in Manhattan. “It’s big geographically, with over a hundred properties in the district, including historic and heavily used properties like Tompkins Square Park, East River Park, and Seward Park, one of the first playgrounds in the city. COVID meant restrictions, but our city parks still needed tending and maintenance. The City Cleanup Corps was a huge boon for us. They were ready, able, and willing to work, which was a great help for parks and properties that had been unfortunately neglected due to COVID. Now, they got revitalized.”

With a background in environmental studies, making New York City’s urban environmental spaces as good as they can be is something Chris is very passionate about. “My daughter was born in the middle of the pandemic… but this summer we got to take her to the park and she loves it. I want every New Yorker to have these spaces, where they can just relax and enjoy being someplace that doesn’t have four walls. It’s great that the communities have these properties to use. The City Cleanup Corps has really done a lot to make these spaces much better for everybody.”
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12/24/2021

"Everybody has a story, you know? Before COVID, I was a janitor; I’ve always been a hard worker, and I’m very self motivated. Hard work has always been my thing. It’s great to work hard and know that you’re helping people.

But you know what I like? The respect. The community love us, and the respect we’re showing them, that’s what they show me. It’s about creating expressions of positivity, ways for us to collectively connect – different people from different walks of life helping each other out; we can’t do it alone!

It’s lucky we have one another. Well, some say lucky; I say it’s a blessing."
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