Clean and Safe Program

The Camden Special Services District is the business improvement district of Downtown Camden NJ.  The CSSD administers a successful andweel-established clean and safe program that provides an enhanced sense of safety and hospitality to visitors, residents, employees and students, by improving the physical appearance of the Downtown and adjacent business corridors.  CSSD Clean & Safe services include litter, graffiti, gum and handbill removal;  weeding and general landscape activity; and ambassador information services.  The program is supported by voluntary contributions from major institutional ancors in the city, local government and private businesses.  Additional services are also offered in fee-for-service contracts and from foundational grants.

CSSD's Clean & Safe provides standard pan and broom service to beautify and maintain the Downtown.  In 2010 alone, CSSD workers removed over one million gallons of trash and maintained over two billion square feet of land in Downtown Camden, surrounding business corridors and neighborhoods.  To complement the impact of the pan and broom program, CSSD recently expanded servces to include citywide graffiti removal and landscaping.  Over 1,000 occrrences of graffiti have been removed sicne this program was initiated in 2010.  New landscaping efforts have helped beautify the downtown, key business corridors and surrounding neighborhoods.  CSSD workers are always in uniform when htey complete their daily tasks.  They are safer and more easily recognized in their bright yellow uniforms and have become familiar fixtures to anyone who lives, works and regularly visits the City.

Visitors to the City have quickly learned that besides cleaning, the "Yellow Jackets" can also provide directions or other general information and assistance.  This ambassador aspect of the program is as critical to the improvement of the Downtown areas as the cleaning and greening activities.

Applying capitalistic strategies to achieve a philanthropic goal, the CSSD  is a social enterprise.  All employees of the Clean & Safe program are Camden residents, and through their employment are making the City a better place to live, work, visit and invest.

Visit us on FaceBook

CSSD 2010 Annual Downtown Performance Numbers*

*Change in numbers represent changes in ambassador team, one less worker in the district and two workers with landscaping team three days out of the week.