Talking Trash:  25 Strategies to Make It Disappear—Main Street Conference in Milwaukee

 We will be speaking at the National Main Street Center Conference in 2016 in Milwaukee on

Talking Trash:  25 Strategies to Make It Disappear

 

We all know the truism: if downtown is not clean, then shoppers just won’t come. Downtown cleanliness is part of the image that we project to the world, and shows how we care about our city, and also ourselves. But how do you begin to address the casual littering, overflowing dumpsters, short dumping in vacant lots, unswept sidewalks, and household trash in public waste baskets that makes up the wretched refuse of downtown work?   This crash course begins by identifying key offenders--those most responsible for downtown trash--the public, merchants, and area residents. For each group and the trash they generate, we’ll discuss “carrot” strategies:  designed encourage compliance and incentives for better behavior. We will also talk about “stick” strategies, including defensive design, enforcement of existing ordinances, creation of new ones, and public education designed to shame the offenders. While some of our downtown trash situations can really be hilarious, we all benefit when trash truly does disappear.

We will be speaking with Alexander Balloon, Commercial Corridor Manager of the Tacony Community Development Corporation

  Drop by and say hi!