Philadelphia asks nonprofits to bid for its commercial corridor cleaning program
The Department of Commerce opened a request for proposals on Oct. 27 for nonprofits to sweep sidewalks on neighborhood shopping streets under its Taking Care of Business program. Proposals are due Dec. 18, and organizations already in the program must apply again.
Philadelphia. Philadelphia's Department of Commerce is looking for nonprofits to keep the sidewalks of the city's neighborhood shopping streets clean. On Oct. 27 it opened a request for proposals for its Taking Care of Business program, under which the city pays community organizations to sweep litter on commercial corridors on a regular schedule. Every area the program now covers is open to proposals.
The contracts run from July 1, 2027, to June 30, 2028, and may be renewed up to four times. Organizations that hold a contract now are encouraged to apply, but the department says current participation does not guarantee continued participation: every organization has to submit a proposal.
What the work involves
Nonprofits in the program sweep sidewalks and work with the city on problems block by block, such as spots where trash is dumped illegally. Some hire their own crews of cleaning ambassadors; others subcontract with local cleaning companies. Applicants may also propose power washing and tree care alongside the cleaning.
Ambassadors must be paid at least the minimum set by the city's 21st Century Wage requirement, which the program's page puts at $17.63 an hour, and they receive free workforce training. A typical crew has five to eight people working five days a week, according to the program's page.
The program, funded by City Council in November 2019, currently funds 51 neighborhood-based nonprofits, the department said in April. In its 2024 annual report, the department counted 155 corridors, 324 cleaning ambassadors and 177,302 bags of trash collected that year. Contract holders that year ranged from the Lower North Philadelphia Community Development Corporation, which cleans Ridge Avenue, to the Allegheny West Foundation, on Allegheny and Hunting Park avenues.
Dates
An in-person briefing is set for Nov. 12 at 10:30 a.m. at the OIC Center, 1231 N. Broad St., and the department strongly encourages applicants to attend. Questions are due by Nov. 24, and answers will be posted on Nov. 30. Proposals are due by 5 p.m. on Dec. 18 through eContract Philly, the city's contracting site, under opportunity number 21261019154520.
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