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In June 1996, the County embarked on an ambitious new initiative to protect the health, safety, and welfare of communities within the County. This initiative, which we named the Community Maintenance Program, involves coordination between a number of County agencies, businesses, citizen volunteers, and community groups to help residents preserve and enhance the physical environment of neighborhoods as a deterrent to crime and blight.
 The focus of the program is on simple, routine maintenance of properties by eliminating the presence of rats, litter, trash, debris, graffiti, unsafe structures, weeds, drug blight, inoperable vehicles, and neglected buildings. I championed this program and am very pleased at the way it has
evolved.
The Brookland District has benefited from dozens of community and neighborhood clean-ups since we started them in November 1995. Many of these efforts stemmed from the County''s Community Maintenance Program while others were initiated independently by civic associations and coordinated with the County''s Keep Henrico Beautiful Program and Department of Public Utilities.
The clean-ups have been a huge success, resulting in thousands of tons of unsightly trash and debris being removed from yards and homes in the Brookland
District.
 The Community Maintenance Program has also helped many physically and financially disadvantaged residents, especially elderly individuals,
to make needed home repairs. At a meeting of the County''s Board of Supervisors in October 1997, I recognized members of the Henrico Division of
Fire's Recruit Academy and their instructors for their work on a residential community maintenance project at the home of an elderly Lakeside resident. These individuals volunteered their time to install siding, erect a fence, and clean up the yard. Their efforts, while very much appreciated, are just one example of the positive community response to the program.
Citizens who desire additional information on the Community Maintenance Program are encouraged to call the County''s Community Maintenance hotline at 501-4757.
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