Costumed Trash Cleanup To Sweep Hell's Kitchen On Halloween

HELL'S KITCHEN, NY — If you spot a zombie or a superhero cleaning up trash along Ninth Avenue this weekend, your eyes haven't deceived you: it's likely a member of the Hell's Kitchen Litter Legion, which is planning a costumed cleanup Saturday on Halloween.

Hell's Kitchen resident Catie Savage started the group in June, when outdoor dining was still outlawed and the neighborhood's sidewalks were clogged with people eating and drinking using to-go containers, which often ended up strewn on the street.

"We have been meeting up almost every week since then to tackle the trash," Savage told Patch in an email.

Currently, the legion is focusing its efforts on the garbage cans on 10th Avenue, where Savage says pickups have been reduced to just once every two or three days due to a pandemic-induced $106 million cut to the Sanitation Department's budget.

Saturday's "HalloCLEAN" event will begin at 10:30 a.m. on the northwest corner of 51st Street and Ninth Avenue, complete with "festive snacks" from local bakeries. Bags, gloves and a few trash grabbers will be provided, Savage said. The legion is asking participants to sign up online to gauge how many snacks are needed.

And costumes are not required.