News
Visalia Cleanup Program a "SWEEP" Success
12.19.24
From dumped tree branches to furniture, no job is too big or to small to be handled by the City of Visalia SWEEP team.
From dumped tree branches to furniture, no job is too big or to small to be handled by the City of Visalia SWEEP team.
At the Monday, December 16 City Council meeting, Paul Bernal, Comm TITLE Tracy Robertshaw, City of Visalia Neighborhood Preservation Manager, presented the Council with an update on the Solid Waste Environment Enhancement Program, known as SWEEP.
The SWEEP team is comprised of five City employees, and they use a truck with a trailer in each of the quadrants of the City.
“The City is divided up in just about four equal parts, each team member is assigned an area of the City,” shared Robertshaw. “Setting the City up like that provided us the opportunity to provide staffing seven days a week.”
Robertshaw noted that the teams have been cross trained so they’re aware of trouble spots in the City and they inspect those locations every day.
SWEEP staff respond to calls from citizens to the Neighborhood Preservation Division, as well as requests from the Public Works Department, the Police Department and City staff that need their assistance.
“People really like to dump green waste; alleyways are an issue. They deal with a wide variety of situations,” added Robertshaw.
SWEEP kicked off on June 10, 2024 and through November 30, they have removed 42.4 tons of debris and 46 large appliances from the Public Right of Way. That number does not include the weight of the 120 mattresses and 66 tires collected.
In total, 13 properties have been referred to Code Enforcement for illegal dumping in the Public Right of Way.
“That was one of the largest complaints that we were getting from the community, that Visalia was just looking a little dirty, and that’s not something that we were used to hearing in our community,” provided Mayor Brett Taylor. “What a blessing that we were able to make this happen.”
The SWEEP team will continue to operate throughout Visalia, seven days a week.
To report issues of illegal dumping, call the City of Visalia Code Violation Hotline at (559) 713-4534 or report online at here.