One sunny town where Katherine Bates penned the song "America the Beautiful" might be inspiring a new tune with radical cost-saving measures. Nestled against the Rocky Mountains, this conservative town isn't afraid that litter collecting in its lovely parks and green spaces will tarnish its outdoorsy image. In fact the cash-strapped city has made a variety of "creative" cuts in the city budget from getting rid of park trash cans to turning off street lights.
Who really needs a trash can in a park? Most of the moms I know who take their kids to the park would like one. And not just because they would prefer to use it, but because they are smart enough to know many guests at the park just might "forget" to haul out their own trash.
Evidently the voters of Colorado Springs think park trash cans are unnecessary. And in a city of 400,000 with a growing tea party movement, no desire for property tax increases, and dwindling city revenues, the voters love a good cutback.
So what is a park goer to do with their empty Gatorade bottles, Starbucks cups, crumpled Big Mac containers, and even the stinky dog poo?
BYOLB (Bring Your Own Litter Bag)
And not only do you need your own litter bag--you need to carry out your trash too. Hmmm. I'm thinking that more than a few folks are going to just stash their trash near a park bench and figure they will pick it up later--which really means they will NEVER touch it again.
Creative or crazy cost-saving measures?
Will these cost-saving programs at work in CS thrive or fail?
• Concerned citizens are organizing a volunteer movement to supply trash cans to the city's 128 parks.
• The city's solution to streets darkened by street lights that have been turned off to save money: Citizens can adopt a street light for $100 a year.
• Taxi drivers have been recruited to help the cash-strapped police force by acting as a "second set of eyes" to help alert police of potential problems in neighborhoods.
You can read more about the city's spin on the drastic cutbacks at Taking Small Government to the Extreme - WSJ.com.(Photo: Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs by Beverly & Pack)
