Programs and Services
Area Maintenance
The Lincoln Square BID’s Clean Team performs the most Herculean tasks throughout the year, yet it has the lowest turnover rate for personnel. In winter months, the diligent crew, contracted through Streetplus, shovel titanic masses of heavy snow from crosswalks, catch basins, fire hydrants, bus shelters and Lincoln Square’s 10 Broadway islands a.k.a. malls. In the heat of summer, the team picks up brooms and sweeps sidewalks going 18 inches from the curb into the street.
And, no matter the weather, area trash receptacles are emptied daily and park benches, tables and chairs are wiped clean. During the COVID-19 crisis, the team also disinfects these surfaces regularly. Wielding paint and scrub brushes, the crew banishes graffiti, scrubs trash receptacles and paints lampposts, parking meters and street sign poles. In dry months, the team hefts portable tanks to scrub dirt and grime from corners.
Working seven days a week, in shifts from 8:00am to 8:00pm or 9:00pm depending on the season, the 11 members of the Clean Team ensure that Lincoln Square is free of litter and pleasing to the eye.
Lincoln Square is one of the City’s most highly trafficked areas. Each year, an estimated 23 million pedestrians use its sidewalks and public spaces. Consequently, the BID spends over 50% of its annual budget on maintenance and public improvements.
In the Broadway Malls, a crew of Green Keepers hired through the Goddard Riverside Community center, a wonderful local services organization, aids the Clean Team.
The BID held a beneficial partnership with Midtown Community Court, which provided the help of non-violent offenders who were serving community service. The program was a big help in the unending task of seeing that Lincoln Square remains the best it can be. but is currently on hiatus.
clean team stats
The BID likes to be among the first in the City to adopt programs created to help neighborhood sidewalks and streets stay clean and safe. Several years ago, we signed up as participants in the Department of Sanitation’s new recycling bin program. In 2022, we applied for the City's Clean Curbs Pilot Program, which aims to help reduce the number of trash bags that get placed on our sidewalks. With the help of the Department of Sanitation, we purchased Citibins, rodent-proof containers, which we had installed in the road bed at two locations on Broadway. The bags are placed in the bins by our Clean Team while they await collection by the Department of Sanitation. This way, sidewalks will be clear for walking and look cleaner, which is a win-win for pedestrians, property owners, and businesses. The Citibins are a good-looking addition to our streetscape, and complement the 125 BID branded Victor Stanley trash receptacles, all of which were replaced in 2015. In 2016 and 2020, thanks to grants from Council Member Helen Rosenthal, we installed a total of 5 BigBelly units, solar powered trash compacting and recycling receptacles, at key locations to lower the number of unsightly trash bags on corners.