NYC to Hire 1,500 Homeless People to Help 'Cleanup Corps' Combat Graffiti

Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday promised a new cleanup crew will tackle the city’s graffiti problem. 1,500 homeless people will be hired for the job.

Graffiti in SoHo
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Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Graffiti in SoHo

To combat New York City’s graffiti problem, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Thursday that he plans on hiring 10,000 New Yorkers for his new cleaning program, City Cleanup Corps.

WABC reports 1,500 of the 10,000 jobs will be filled by homeless people. 

“On the question of graffiti, you’re going to see a big impact from the Cleanup Corps. They’re going to be out there, they’re hiring up as we speak,” de Blasio said during his Thursday press briefing. “You’re going to see a particularly strong impact going into July, August as we get ready for everything to come back off the summer. We’re going to address the graffiti issue across the board and it’s one of many things we’re doing to bring this city back.”

De Blasio’s City Cleanup Corps arrive amid a recent surge of graffiti in Manhattan, as neighborhoods like SoHo have been targeted by an onslaught of scrawlings on everything from storefronts to staircases. 

The Cleanup Corps will focus on 33 neighborhoods the mayor’s administration has identified as those hardest hit by coronavirus. The jobs, which are being funded by federal stimulus funds, will pay $15 an hour.

According to WABC, the first 500 jobs are posted with 500 more expected to be added soon. More than 7,700 positions will be posted in July, with a total of 10,000 expected by August. 10 different City agencies, including the Department of Parks & Recreation (Parks), Department of Transportation (DOT), New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), will do the hiring.

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