One Man's Cleanup Campaign

One Man's Cleanup Campaign

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Story Published: Oct 14, 2004 at 5:55 AM PDT

Story Updated: Aug 31, 2006 at 1:35 AM PDT

By Corwin Haeck

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SEATTLE - Have you walked down a back alley lately? You might be surprised to find many of Seattle's dirtiest alleys are nearly spotless these days.

All because one man stepped in where the city feared to tread.

Chris Martin is president of CleanScapes, a for-profit trash collection company dedicated to ridding city alleys of dumpsters and the problems they cause.

"It's not really an anti-dumpster campaign," he says. "We're not going after every dumpster everywhere. It's really where they pose a livability and public safety issue."

By contracting with businesses to replace dumpsters with tidy garbage bag pickup, CleanScapes not only removes the trash, it also removes hiding places for some of the city's more odious street activity.

"Things like crack smoking, prostitution, and going to the bathroom," Martin says.

As a result, he's also making these Pioneer Square alleys actually pleasant to walk through.

For More Information:

www.cleanscapes.org

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