Advancing Mayor Parker’s One Philly, United City Cleaning Initiative

On Monday, November 3, the fall edition of the One Philly, United City Citywide Cleaning Program kicks off. This is the fourth round of the program. Since its inception over 200,000 quality-of-life services have been completed.

Since June 2024, the program has had a significant impact:

• 50,000+ Blocks Cleaned
• 43,000+ Led Lights Installed
• 21,000+ Vacant Lots Cleaned
• 13,000+ Graffiti Removals

Cleaning will take place in every neighborhood over a 13-week period from November 3, 2025, through January 30, 2026. Over a dozen city departments along with quasi-governmental agencies and nonprofits will work in tandem to address the many chronic quality of life issues related to litter, illegal dumping, graffiti, abandoned automobiles, vacant lots, and nuisance properties in support of Mayor Parker's vision of Philadelphia becoming the Safest, Cleanest, Greenest big city in the nation with Access to Economic Opportunity for All.

Thanks to the success of the program and the diligent efforts of each agency's employees, the One Philly, United City Citywide Cleaning Program is now standard operating procedure where detailed cleaning will take place in every neighborhood twice annually. Utilizing a proactive, intergovernmental, holistic strategy that addresses every quality-of-life service from illegal dumping remediation to graffiti removal city departments and partnering agencies continue to work to make Philly cleaner and greener.

The Sanitation-led cleaning program will be coordinated with other City agencies to simultaneously address major quality of life issues and clean additional public spaces in each Sanitation district. The full-service cleaning plan has several components:

• Sanitation Department cleaning teams made up of laborers equipped with brooms, shovels, weed trimmers and air blowers to clean up the trash and clear fence and curb lines littered with trash. Mechanical equipment will be deployed, including flushers and blowers to remove debris and clean the streets thoroughly.
• Maintenance and repair of vacant lots and removal of graffiti by CLIP.
• Commercial corridor cleaning by the Commerce Department's PHL Taking Care.
• Deep clean neighborhood parks and rec centers by PPR.
• Cleaning and lawn maintenance at between neighborhood schools by SDP of Business program; facilities teams.
• Inspection, cleaning, sealing, and enforcement of nuisance properties by L+I.
• Removal of unregistered and abandoned automobiles by PPA and PPD.
• Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) and inlet maintenance by PWD.
• Pothole paving by the Streets Department.
• Transit station cleanings by SEPTA

Philadelphia is on the path to becoming a cleaner, greener city- and it's all thanks to the dedication of our city workers and the One Philly, United City movement.