Relieve that spring-cleaning itch by helping friends and neighbors spruce up Burien during the city's thirteenth annual Clean Sweep on Saturday, April 30. New this year, Clean Sweep will include a scavenger hunt for the volunteers celebrating artwork by young Burien artists on Southwest 153rd Street.

From 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on April 30, make a difference in the community by sweeping sidewalks, trimming shrubs, planting flowers, picking up trash and more. During last year's Clean Sweep, more than 400 people removed 8.15 tons of garbage from Burien's streets, parks and commercial areas.

Clean Sweep is presented by the city of Burien and the Discover Burien Association. Event sponsors are the law firm of Linn, Schisel & DeMarco, P.S., Prudential Northwest Realty Associates and Waste Management.
On the day of Clean Sweep, volunteers must register and sign releases at the Fire District No. 2 Station at Eighth Avenue Southwest and Southwest 151st Street in downtown Burien beginning at 8 a.m. Enjoy a continental breakfast during morning registration, including donations of bread from Grand Central Bakery, bagels from Panera Bread and coffee from Pacific Coffee Company. El Dorado West Retirement Community is contributing bottled water for thirsty volunteers.

Although participants will be provided with some cleanup materials, George recommends participants bring useful yard tools such as shovels, rakes, clippers and brooms. Linn, Schisel & DeMarco, P.S. is supplying a limited number of gloves, so volunteers might want to bring their own work gloves.

Businesses in Burien's main downtown area may dispose of unwanted items by placing them in the alley or in front of the establishment before 9 a.m. April 30 for pickup. Please call Debra George in advance to arrange for disposal. If items are not picked up noon, call George to let her know your location and she can arrange for pickup that day.

In cooperation with Burien's Environmental Science Center, some Clean Sweep participants will be stenciling labels around storm drains as a reminder that storm water runoff drains are not waste dump zones.

Clean Sweep also includes a scavenger hunt, in which Clean Sweep participants count the new decorative banners along Southwest 153rd Street. The banners are a project of the City of Burien Arts Commission, which partnered with Discover Burien to have the banners printed and installed. Clean Sweep volunteers can pick up forms to enter the hunt at the firehouse and be entered into a raffle of prizes from businesses on 153rd.

As a thank you for their hard work, volunteers will be treated to a hotdog-style lunch at the firehouse contributed by the Mark Restaurant & Bar. Coffee is being donated by Pacific Coffee Company, juice by Highline Medical Center, hotdogs by Restaurant Depot and bread by Grand Central Bakery. A bicycle door prize is being contributed by Prudential.

For more information, call the Discover Burien office at 206-433-2882, Debra George at 206-941-7199 or go online to www.discoverburien.com.