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District 17 Council member Justin Sanchez addresses the crowd while announcing the installation of over 60 new street trash cans across the Bronx. Photo by Kaylen Jackson.<\/p>\nIt started as a phrase blunt enough to make his grandmother \u201croll over in her grave.\u201d Now it\u2019s becoming a policy. Two weeks into his term, Council Member Justin Sanchez is already delivering on the phrase that defined his campaign, \u201cClean the damn streets.\u201d<\/p>\n
Standing at the corner of East 163rd Street and Intervale Avenue in Longwood, on Thursday, Jan. 15, Sanchez addressed residents, sanitation officials, and community leaders to announce the installation of more than 60 new street trash cans across District 17 \u2013 an early, visible action meant to fulfill the promise that powered his campaign.<\/p>\n
\u201cI represent the 17th Council District of the South Bronx, a place I\u2019m proud to call home,\u201d Sanchez said.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thing you learn about growing up here in the South Bronx is that your environment shapes how you feel about yourself.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
For Sanchez, the absence of something as basic as a trash can is not a minor quality of life issue but a reflection of how communities are valued. What residents see on their way to school, to work, or to the corner store quietly communicates whether they are seen, cared for, or overlooked.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the South Bronx, litter is something that we see, that we touch, that we feel every single day,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s on our sidewalks, it\u2019s at our bus stops, it\u2019s outside our homes and businesses. And when garbage piles up, it sends a message.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Over time, Sanchez explained, that message erodes more than just physical space. Chronic litter affects mental health, physical health, and how residents perceive their own neighborhoods and how others perceive them too.<\/p>\n
It was a central reason he ran for office on a platform grounded in neighborhood pride, representation, and dignity.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cHere in the South Bronx, dignity starts with four simple words: clean the damn streets,\u201d Sanchez said. \u201cThat\u2019s not a slogan, it\u2019s a standard.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Those four words, he said, were with him everywhere during the campaign: on doorsteps, at bus stops, outside bodegas, and on block corners all across the district. For voters, this wasn\u2019t abstract policy; it was their daily reality. And now, Sanchez said, it was the government\u2019s job to respond.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is one of the simplest ways to show that the government can actually work for you,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n
Even though he\u2019s only been in office for two weeks, Sanchez told the Bronx Times that he intends to follow through on the promises that got him elected.\n<\/p>\n
The new rollout includes more than 60 new trash cans placed throughout the district, many along corridors that previously went blocks without a single place to dispose of trash. Sanchez described the initiative as a starting point rather than a cure-all.<\/p>\n
District 17 Council member Justin Sanchez addresses the crowd while announcing the installation of over 60 new street trash cans across the Bronx. Photo by Kaylen Jackson.<\/p>\n
Sanchez was joined by representatives from the Department of Sanitation, business improvement districts and community boards. Many emphasized that sanitation is foundational to nearly every other quality-of-life concern \u2014 from public health to economic vitality.<\/p>\n
Javier Lojan, acting commissioner of the Department of Sanitation, emphasized that the effort was part of a broader strategy to allocate resources more efficiently while working within existing service routes.<\/p>\n
Most of the new trash cans, Sanchez later confirmed, are being placed along routes already maintained by sanitation crews, allowing the department to sustain service without major disruption while planning for future expansion in the next fiscal year.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re working with what we have available,\u201d Sanchez said, \u201cand coming next year, we hope to expand on what we\u2019re already doing.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
The city currently maintains 23,000 corner litter baskets across all five boroughs, according to Vincent Gragnani, press secretary for the Department of Sanitation. Over time, baskets go missing and a survey of the Bronx identified several areas that should have more.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese baskets help keep neighborhoods clean by giving pedestrians a place to dispose of \u2018walking trash,\u2019 like candy wrappers and coffee cups,\u201d Gragnani said.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cTo ensure that properly used litter baskets do not overflow, the Department of Sanitation is currently providing the highest level of service to litter baskets citywide.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
For local business leaders, cleaner streets aren\u2019t just about appearances, they\u2019re about business.\n<\/p>\n
Javier Medina, executive director of the Southern Boulevard Business Improvement District, said visible trash discourages people from shopping, dining, or lingering in commercial corridors, which directly affects small businesses.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen trash builds up on our streets, it affects how people feel,\u201d Medina said. \u201cIf an area looks unclean, people are less likely to shop, dine, or spend money, which directly affects our local businesses and restaurants.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new containers, he said, would allow maintenance teams to work more efficiently, spending less time responding to overflowing street trash and more time improving overall conditions \u2014 a shift that benefits both residents and merchants.<\/p>\n
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District 17 Council member Justin Sanchez and Javier Medina of the Southern Boulevard BID talk on the street moments before the press conference begins. Photo by Kaylen Jackson.<\/p>\n
Community board leaders emphasized that clean streets go hand in hand with neighborhood pride and morale. Etta Ritter, district manager for Community Board 3, noted how chronic litter and illegal dumping affect the community.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we have dirty streets, it undermines community morale,\u201d Ritter said. \u201cOver time, these conditions affect neighborhood pride, public safety, and overall health. When residents see chronic litter, it sends a message that their community is being overlooked.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ritter described the installation of new trash cans as an important first step \u2014 one that provides residents with the tools they need to take pride in their blocks while reinforcing that their concerns are being addressed in a tangible way.<\/p>\n
\u201cClean streets uplift communities,\u201d she said. \u201cToday marks an important step in the right direction.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
For residents like Ariel Burgos, a Longwood local, the issue feels both obvious and overdue.\n<\/p>\n
Burgos said he regularly sees people throw trash on the street, not necessarily out of disregard, but because there simply isn\u2019t anywhere to put it.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThere isn\u2019t a trash can on every block,\u201d Burgos said.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can walk pretty far sometimes and not see one, which makes it hard for some people to throw their trash away. I think more trash cans will create more opportunities for cleaner streets.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Sanchez acknowledged that more trash cans alone won\u2019t fix everything. But argued that the initial absence of basic sanitation infrastructure made improvement nearly impossible.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can walk around like eight blocks in any direction in my district and not see a single trash can,\u201d Sanchez said. \u201cThen people wonder why the streets are littered. At its very essence, we have no place to put trash.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Councilmember Sanchez, the work doesn\u2019t stop with installing trash cans \u2013 it\u2019s about setting a new standard for how residents experience their neighborhoods and showing that the government can act on promises. Clean streets aren\u2019t a luxury, they\u2019re a sign that the South Bronx matters.<\/p>\n
Kaylen Jackson is a contributing writer at the Bronx Times and a student at the NYU Graduate School of Journalism.\u00a0For more coverage, subscribe to our\u00a0newsletter<\/a>\u00a0and follow us on\u00a0Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>!<\/p>\n \t