City paying $2.5M for new project cracking down on grime and graffiti downtown

The City of Edmonton is launching a new $2.5 million initiative to clean up the downtown core. (John Hanson/CTV News Edmonton)

The city is looking to crack down on unsightly messes downtown.

Edmonton is putting $2.5 million toward cleaning up and beautifying the downtown core.

The Clean City Initiative starts this month and runs until February 2024. Money will go to hiring more staff and increasing services for garbage collection and removal, green space maintenance, and cleaning up litter and graffiti.

“A strong downtown is vital to our economy," said Ward Nakota Isga Coun. Andrew Knack. "Our city's success does truly hinge on the success of our downtown."

"And we know that for a downtown to be successful, it has to be safe, it has to be clean and it has to be vibrant.”

The initiative will make cleaning and maintenance work downtown more effective by combining those services, the city said, which will allow staff to respond faster when services are requested.

The city announced Thursday that it is also giving $100,000 to the Edmonton Downtown Business Association (EDBA) to expand litter pick up and power washing services by the EDBA.

"Our sidewalks will be cleaner, our park spaces will be greener, and our public spaces will be much more vibrant," said Ward O-day'min Coun. Anne Stevenson. "This project won't just make our downtown look better, it will make it feel better as well."

The new project is one of several underway to rejuvenate downtown Edmonton and address safety concerns in the area.

The city said it will be surveying Edmontonians on their experiences living or visiting downtown, but no details have been given yet on how or when the survey will be carried out.

Requests for City of Edmonton services, including reporting graffiti or litter, can be made online or by calling 311.