HOUSTON — A group of volunteers began their day Saturday along Bissonnet Street picking up the trash in an area that’s had to deal with sex trafficking and other issues like illegal dumping.
The event is part of Mayor Sylvester Turner's One Clean Houston initiative and people from the area are hoping the cleanup has a positive impact.
“I grew up closer to Highway 6 and Westheimer but we did come down here and this was kind of a no zone, we weren’t allowed to travel in this area,” said Amy Malkan, who is from Spring but wanted to participate in Saturday’s cleanup.
“I’m an Alief alum, I wanted to support where I grew up, second support Edward Pollard and what he’s doing for the community, and three have my son be a part of this and do something good in the world,” Malkan said.
“Today is another step in the right direction fixing the Bissonnet corridor,” said Edward Pollard, Houston City Councilman for District J.
He led part of the cleanup efforts. Pollard’s staff joined Houston police officers and members of the Solid Waste Department for Saturday’s cleanup.
In the past few months, the city has tried a different approach to tackling the prostitution problem on Bissonnet. Officers have set up street blockages to try and curb prostitution. According to HPD’s West Side Division Commander, 140 felony arrests and 40 misdemeanor arrests were made since May, which are focused on the buyers and the pimps.
Councilman Pollard said he wants to use other methods outside of policing to beautify the area.
“We don’t want to focus specifically on law enforcement but we also want to take pride in the community from a solid waste standpoint,” Councilman Pollard said.
Councilman Pollard said the mayor recently approved $5 million for the One Safe Houston program. He said a lot of that money will go towards overtime and resources for the Houston Police Department to address the issues.
Police and members of the public school community helped with the cleanup. Many volunteers from Alief ISD were out picking up trash.
“It feels good...just actually seeing we’re out here in front of our school it helps us see where we’re at and be a part of the community,” Jose Ortiz, an assistant principal at Best Elementary said during the cleanup.
People hope that cleaning up the bad can lead to a better future on Bissonnet.
“We’ve come a long way but we still have a long way to go, and I think with different parts of the community coming together as one to make a change it’s a big deal,” Malkan said.