City workers remove trash from bank of the Kansas River in Topeka

TOPEKA (KSNT) – City workers returned to the bank of the Kansas River in Topeka to continue efforts to clean up the area.

City of Topeka workers could be spotted along the north bank of the Kansas River this week as they cleared trash and debris left around the area. Staff with the city’s Property Maintenance Division, Topeka Police Department and Water Pollution Control teamed up for the work.

City workers will spend about three weeks in the area and will move from one side of the levy in north Topeka to the other. Outreach teams went to local homeless encampments months ago to give people alternative housing options.

“We focus on the people first, and then we come in later, like today, and we start removing the blight and rubbish, anything associated with a sanitation violation,” said John Schardine with the City of Topeka.

The city received help from partners associated with Valeo, the Topeka Rescue Mission and the Housing Services Division for the cleanup this week. The cleanup operations along the river stem from an expanded camping ordinance and months of previous work to clear trash, debris and other items from the riverbank left behind by homeless camps.

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