Trash litters the southwest corner of Southside Boulevard and Baymeadows Road on March 21, 2025. | Steven Ponson, Jacksonville Today
Published on July 3, 2025 at 1:01 pm
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Jacksonville is beginning a campaign to fight litter and blight that will employ new technology and possibly drones to identify trouble spots and increase enforcement.
Mayor Donna Deegan announced the program — Keep Jax Cute – Don’t Pollute — on Thursday. She described it as a combination of education, prevention, enforcement and community engagement to “take back our streets, parks and neighborhoods and bring back a sense of pride.”
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The city is partnering with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp on the effort. Speaking at VyStar Ballpark, Deegan said that everywhere she goes, people complain to her about trash on sidewalks and highways, debris in ditches and broken-down properties that “drag down entire blocks of our city.”
“We all see it, and we deserve better,” Deegan said. “So we are doing something about it with a new effort to build a cleaner, prouder, more economically vibrant city, neighborhood by neighborhood. That’s why this campaign is covering all the bases, to use a baseball term. It will focus on education, prevention and enforcement; also grassroots engagement with the community.”
Administrative Service Director Richard Reichard said the city will use a different approach than before to keep a more sophisticated eye on garbage and find out who is dumping it.
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“We are going to use technology to our advantage by implementing better cameras to monitor potential litter sites and hold those accountable that are littering,” Reichard said. “We are exploring the opportunity to possibly use drones. We will make better use of technology that will allow us to quickly identify hot spots, so we will better be able to coordinate all our efforts. We are going to strengthen our enforcement ordinances.”
Deegan and Reichard were joined by city blight initiatives manager Al Ferraro and Jumbo Shrimp General Manager Harold Craw to kick off the anti-litter project.
Along with more community involvement, those with blighted properties will be held more accountable for the appearance of those sites, Deegan said. And the increased anti-litter efforts will get $500,000 more in city funds, while also asking waste haulers to “kick in some extra funds as well.”
“But we also want this campaign to be fun,” she said, pointing to what she called the campaign’s cute racoon mascot –T.P. (Tidy Paws) McClean.
Deegan said neighborhoods and residents are asked to join the Jax Litter League, which pits neighborhood teams against one another in a race to pick up litter and rack up points.
Teams that haul in the most garbage — proven by before and after photographs of their community — will win the chance to take part in the first pitch at a Shrimp game and watch the game from a suite.
“I believe that the Litter League, along with this entire initiative, is not only going to make our city better, but give the opportunity for local citizens, organizations and the business community to take part in that process,” Craw said.
City officials said every resident has a role to play, whether they report illegal dumping, join a cleanup or teach children the value of a clean neighborhood. The city also will work with the State Attorney’s Office to prosecute illegal dumpers, Ferraro said.
The campaign’s new website offers ways to fight litter and reminds residents of current avenues to report issues and help keep the community clean:
- Take the Pledge: Sign the “Keep Jax Cute, Don’t Pollute” pledge.
- Visit the MyJax Customer Service Online Portal: Submit waste collection requests and report neighborhood blight.
- Download the Waste and Recycling App: The Jacksonville Waste and Recycling mobile app provides a customized collection calendar for trash, recycling and green waste pickup, plus holiday scheduling and disposal guidelines. The “Wizard” section can help residents determine whether a specific item goes into their trash, recycling or compost.
- Register a Cleanup Event: Use the online cleanup and inventory management system to register a cleanup, request supplies or trash pickup for a cleanup event, or share results with the city.
