East Point council hears plea to keep Clean City senior yard‑maintenance program running

East Point city officials heard a progress update Monday on the Clean City Senior Initiative, a volunteer‑led yard‑maintenance program that trims trees, clears gutters and organizes volunteer crews to help older residents remain in place.

The program’s founders and partners told the City Council the initiative has directly served hundreds of households and asked the council to include funding in the coming fiscal year so work can continue.

The program, run by the Men of Intelligence cooperative and partners, has performed tree‑trimming and yard work for seniors and connected residents with larger repairs through Habitat for Humanity and Fulton County, Darnellus Mays, who identified himself as the Men of Intelligence president, told the council. “So far, we’ve done 296 tree trim yards. We’ve trimmed trees on a property or we’ve cut the trees down,” Mays said, summarizing the group’s field work and volunteer partnerships.

Kimberly Smith, East Point’s planning and community development director, told council the program currently operates under an agreement that expires at the end of the fiscal year. “Once the budget is approved, those items that are in there, they would have to formalize those,” Smith said, describing the typical process staff uses to convert budgeted line items into an MOU or contract.

Staff said the program has kept costs down by leveraging partnerships with Home Depot, Habitat for Humanity and community volunteers. Smith and other presenters noted program statistics shared in the meeting: roughly 351 yards manicured, 302 gutters cleaned and 296 tree‑related property interventions since the program expanded. Presenters also said about 42% of East Point housing is owner‑occupied and that roughly 22% of residents are age 55 or older—context they framed as a driver for prioritizing aging‑in‑place services.

Council members pressed staff on the program’s procurement and contract status. Council member Shropshire and others asked whether the agreement could be renewed; City Manager Jones and staff said the program remains included in the draft budget and, if council generally approves funding, a new MOU could be prepared and returned to council for formal approval. “Once it’s approved, those items that are in there, they would have to formalize those,” Smith said.

Several seniors who had received services spoke from the audience and described care they had received from the volunteers. Josephine Brown, who said she has lived on Leith Avenue since 1988, told council she appreciated the “professional” crews and said having the trees trimmed had been “a big help.”

Council members thanked the volunteers and program leaders; when the city manager said funding is included in the draft budget, several members signaled support for continuing the program but also noted the formal contract will need to come back for council action. The city manager said staff will prepare required documents (an amended MOU or contract language) after the budget is finalized.

The council did not take a final vote on a new contract during Monday’s meeting; staff said the next step is to finalize the budget and then return to council with a formal MOU or contract for approval.

A spokeswoman for the Men of Intelligence said volunteers also train teens in landscaping and tree trimming as part of a workforce development element built into the program.

Council members and staff said they would pursue a formal contract so the program can keep operating when the current fiscal year ends.