There were wood scraps and pallets, a lamp shaped like a Christmastime nutcracker, a certificate celebrating the recipient’s “1-year accident free” driving record, and tires — lots and lots of tires.
And that was just what volunteers picked up from the streets of Allentown on Saturday morning.
When all was said and done, the neighborhood’s volunteers had collected 49 bags of trash, 91 tires, 21 television sets and 522 bulk-trash items. They also claimed the city Garbage Olympics’ “strangest find” prize: a tall, electric candle shaped like a skinny Santa Claus.
The Garbage Olympics, in their eighth year, were born out of the three organizers’ dedication to cleaning up their neighborhoods. Renee Robinson, Lena Andrews and Alicia Carberry had for years organized trash pickups in their own neighborhoods. In 2017, they turned it into a competition.
“I didn’t really have a vision,” Ms. Robinson said Saturday morning along Hillcrest Street in Garfield. “It was just an idea. Pittsburgh is a competitive city, and people love their neighborhoods.”
Only five neighborhoods participated in that inaugural competition. More than 50 neighborhoods and a few suburbs participated on Saturday, making it the largest competition yet.
This year’s competition saw nearly 600 volunteers from neighborhoods in each corner of the city, from Brighton Heights and the South Side to Duquesne Heights and Morningside.
A few blocks off of East Warrington Avenue near the old St. John Vianney church, leaders of the Allentown team tried to take the top trash collection title for a third year in a row.
“It’s really about a lot of different community members coming together,” said Kayla Huerbin, an Allentown Community Development Corp. board member and property manager with the neighborhood-based RE360.
Richard Brewer, who’s lived in Allentown for three years, was riding his bike Saturday morning when he spotted Ms. Huerbin and others picking up trash.
“‘Making the community beautiful,’” he said they told him. He took his bike home and came back to pitch in.
“Service work is what I like to do,” he said.
At the end of the morning, the city’s southern neighborhoods swept the podium: The South Side Flats placed third, Allentown came in second, and Mount Oliver took the top spot with 150 bags of trash, 125 tires, 92 televisions and 250 bulk items.
“I had nothing to do with deciding who wins these awards,” joked Pittsburgh Councilman Bob Charland, who represents all three of the winning neighborhoods.
“I’m really thankful for how many volunteers [came out], how much we were able to pick up today, but it is a recognition that our city needs more help,” he said. “What we’re doing right now — this shouldn’t have to be an event.”
First Published: September 21, 2024, 8:41 p.m.
Updated: September 22, 2024, 2:29 a.m.