Ambassadors program adds to clean team, extends to Sundays
RALEIGH, NC (August 20, 2014) As downtown activity continues to flourish, the Downtown Raleigh Alliance has enhanced its Clean Ambassador Program, hiring additional ambassadors and expanding days of operations to Sundays. The Clean Ambassador Program was created by the Downtown Raleigh Alliance in an effort to establish downtown as an attractive 24-hour live-work environment, keeping the city’s sidewalks pedestrian-friendly.
To accommodate growth, the program has expanded the clean team from five to eight ambassadors this year–a 60 percent increase. On weekdays from 7:00 am-3:30 pm and Saturdays and now Sundays from 9:00 am-5:30 pm, the ambassadors fan out across all five downtown districts to pick up litter, sweep sidewalks, and remove trash and graffiti-rain or shine. This year is a significant year for downtown with a residential boom adding more than 900 new condos and apartments; expecting to galvanize downtown’s entertainment scene. To accommodate growth, ongoing maintenance is imperative.
“By maintaining clean sidewalks and pedestrian corridors, the Clean Ambassador program directly impacts downtown as a family-friendly destination,” said Jim Belt, President of Downtown Raleigh Living Advocates. “With five residential projects planned in Glenwood South alone, the program will be instrumental in supporting a growing living and working environment in downtown.”
Easily recognizable in red shirted uniforms with “Clean Ambassador” emblazoned on the back, the Clean Team goes above and beyond to maintain a visible and hospitable presence in the downtown area, including downtown streets and outdoor event spaces. Last year, outdoor downtown activity flourished with 246 outdoor events filling downtown with over a million people (128% increase from 2012). During this same period, our Clean Ambassadors spent over 10,000 hours removing 56,182 pounds of trash from just our sidewalks.
The Clean Ambassador program is poised to accommodate the capital city’s growth with eight skilled ambassadors now available seven days a week.
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About Downtown Raleigh Alliance (DRA)
DRA is an award-winning nonprofit organization whose mission is to continue the revitalization of Raleigh’s downtown. The Alliance enhances the quality of life and positively impacts the economic success of downtown through five services: 1. Safety, Hospitality & Clean Ambassadors; 2. Strategic Branding & Community Communications; 3. Special Events Production & City Plaza Programming; 4. Retail Attraction & Merchant Promotions; and 5. Strategic Partnerships & Stakeholder Engagement. For more information about DRA, please visit www.youRhere.com.