Roadside cleanup needs volunteers

    It’s time for a spring cleanup, especially with company coming next month.
    Tina Nelson is organizing an all-town cleanup at the end of April, so that the community is clean-swept by the time thousands of travelers take to historic Route 66 to participate in the Red Carpet Corridor festival the first Saturday in May.
    “I want to get it looking nice for Red Carpet Corridor,” she said.
    Nelson noted the amount of debris along that section of Baltimore Street in front of the family-owned Nelson’s Furniture and Nelly’s on Route 66. But recognizing that the problem isn’t just on her stretch of the highway, she’s planning an event the entire community can benefit from, and hopes the community will join the effort.
    The cleanup will be held Saturday, April 28. It will begin at 8 a.m. and continue until the work is done. It will focus on Baltimore Street, South Water Street and Kankakee Street — the city’s three main thoroughfares. If there are enough volunteers, Kankakee River Drive and North [New] River Road could get some attention.
    The Downtown Merchant’s Association will take care of North Water Street and the greenspace on Jackson Street near the entrance to the walkbridge, Jamie Donovan, co-owner of Two Hounds Antiques reported.
    Nelson hopes the city will be able to provide a dumpster on the city lot near the millrace, where the bags of debris collected can be disposed of, and she’s looking for a donor to help provide garbage bags — she’s still working on those details.
    Nelson is inviting volunteers to participate in the spring clean-up. Anybody who needs service hours, or is just interested in helping to clean up the community’s roadsides, is asked to call her at 815-739-2081 to volunteer as much time as they can give.
    Baltimore Street from the Forked Creek bridge on the east side of town to Strip Mine Road on the west is one of three sections of state highway in Wilmington included in the Illinois Department of Transportation’s Adopt-a-Highway program, and is available for adoption. Nelson has the paperwork, and might just take on that section of road.

Adopt-a-Highway
    IDOT’s Love the Land of Lincoln initiative includes the Adopt-a-Highway, Help Keep our Waterways Clean and Scenic Byways programs.
    Adopt-a-Highway began in 1995. Currently, about 3,400 miles of road have been adopted by nearly 1,700 volunteer groups, according to the Adopt-a-Highway website. Each year, the volunteers remove an average of 32,000 bags of trash from state highways.
    Route 53 from North [New] River Road to the Forked Creek bridge has been cared for by the members of the Father George Kuzma Council 11149 Knights of Columbus since the beginning of the Adopt-a-Highway program. The group was recognized recently for 20 years of participation.
    The Forked Creek to Strip Mine Road section of Route 53 and Route 102 [Water Street] from the downtown intersection to the south side of town are considered abandoned by the groups that were caring for them and are available for adoption.
    Just about anyone can participate in the Adopt-a-Highway program; civic groups, clubs, organizations or any group of like-minded individuals. Participants must be at least 10 years of age.
    Each group is assigned a two-mile section of highway, and can choose a section to adopt as long as it’s available. The volunteers agree to remove litter from their section of road at least four times each year for a two-year period. They typically do the first cleanup in April and the last in October.
    IDOT provides roadside signs identifying the group as an Illinois Adopt-a-Highway program participant, safety vests and trash bags, and removes the filled bags from the roadside.
    Groups interested in participating in Adopt-a-Highway can download a permit request form (OC100) from IDOT’s Community Involvement web page.p