The Newton News provides an opportunity for the Newton BIA to gain awareness in the community and promote local news, & BIA programs.This endeavor allows BIA members to advertise their businesses in the monthly publication.
TEAM TIDY
Newton’s own “Mr. Clean”
Sometimes, superheroes don’t wear capes. You might find that they have blue jackets and a great smile. While strolling and shopping in downtown Newton, it’s the things you don’t see that make a difference. The streets are free of litter; shopping carts retrieved; and the neighbourhood looks neat. The community is fortunate to have a oneman dynamo responsible for maintaining the cleanliness of the streets within the Newton core.
Five days a week, five hours a day, for five years, Kenneth Green hasn’t missed a day of work.
“Even when we had that flash snowstorm this spring (on a Tuesday), and I forgot to phone him, Kenneth managed still to find 20 pounds of trash on those snowy streets”, Philip Aguirre, of Newton BIA said.
Kenneth, the one-person “Team Tidy” has become an essential part of the community with his little cart.
Janice Huber, community liaison with Avia Employment Services in Newton (now Options), was the one who connected Green and the BIA.
It became a perfect fit for the BIA and Kenneth. Executive Director Philip Aguirre walked with Kenneth the first-week orientation, and they became fast friends.
“He’s become a cherished part of the community,” Aguirre said. “If we can beautify our local streets, it instills confidence to the consumers and local store owners that it’s a great place to work and shop.
“A positive economic environment starts with things like Team Tidy,” said Aguirre. “He picks up garbage, reports back on graffiti, and lets us know where the big items are that are in areas that can become eyesores.”
Kenneth has an excellent attitude about the job he’s come to love. “You gotta have a “get up and go” attitude, a sharp eye, and accuracy to do a good job. Five hours goes fast. When I first started with Team Tidy, we’d find 60-70 pounds every day. It’s gotten better, though. Mondays tend to be a little busier, but by Friday, things are looking ‘pretty tidy’ on Newton’s streets. In the five years that Green’s been out keeping the streets clean, 2,694 bags have been gathered with local litter.
That’s 41,347 lbs of paper cups, straws, food waste, and other trash. He carefully separates the trash into recyclables as he goes and lets the local store owners know precisely where their shopping carts are
found. He’s rehomed over 1,077 shopping carts over the years.
Kenneth is also at all the special events that Newton has through the years— Spooktacular in October, Newton Days, and the upcoming “Car Free Day” in downtown Newton in June.
“I like coming up here. I meet a lot of people. It’s a fun place to come. It’s a fun job,”
“I’ve found some big items, like flat screen tv’s and baby strollers, and lots of hubcaps”.
Team Tidy works closely with the CSP (Community Safety Patrol) program to report any problem activities seen throughout their day walking the streets.
Team Tidy is an integral part of the BIA’s ‘area enhancement’ pillars, which includes the shopping cart retrieval program, universal graffiti program, and the exciting Mural Laneway, which will creatively highlight the exciting and growing diverse community of Newton.
If you see Kenneth while you’re out and about, don’t forget to smile at him. He’ll likely give you one right back.