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City sustainability coordinator reports 2,300+ pounds diverted at community clothing swap, urges new partnerships and fee adjustments
Summary
Grace Ledwith, the city's sustainability coordinator, told the Parks and Recreation Commission that the Sept. clothing-reuse event collected more than 2,300 pounds of donations, rehomed roughly 84% of items, drew about 450 people and generated heavy staff costs and lost rental revenue; she recommended stronger nonprofit partnerships, more volunteers and exploring a modest admission fee.
Grace Ledwith, the city's sustainability coordinator, told the Parks and Recreation Commission that the Great Closet Clean Out in September drew about 450 people and produced more than 2,300 pounds of donated clothing.
"We had over 2,300 pounds of clothes donated to us at the community center," Ledwith said. "That's over a ton of clothes." She added that staff estimated roughly 2,000 pounds were taken by attendees, a reuse rate of about 84 percent.
The event is part of work implementing the city's climate action plan, Ledwith said, and staff tracked several operational metrics to evaluate sustainability and cost. She reported that two full-time recreation staff (identified in the presentation as Cole and Molly) each dedicated roughly 80 hours, she personally logged about 70 hours, two facility attendants worked about 16 hours each, and staff costs approached $15,000. The city also forfeited rental revenue because the Cascade Room and the TAM room were reserved for set-up and storage; Ledwith estimated forgone rental income at about $11,000. Material outlays were modest (reported as roughly $200) because many racks and hangers were donated or loaned by partners.
Ledwith framed the numbers as a success on diversion and community engagement but a caution on sustainability. "The main number though is the loss of rental revenue," she said, and sorting and staging the donations was labor intensive. Among the challenges she identified: an extended two-week drop-off window that produced unusually high volumes and an excess of low-value items (worn shirts, branded tees) that required downstream redistribution.
Ledwith recommended several operational changes to reduce the staff burden while preserving community benefit: strengthen partnerships with nonprofits for day-of pickup of leftovers; increase volunteer roles while recognizing the need to manage volunteers; consider co-hosting with nearby jurisdictions or community-based organizations to scale logistics; limit donation drop-off windows to prevent late surges; and explore charging a modest admission fee while maintaining free access for priority groups through partner channels.
Commissioners praised staff and volunteers for the turnout and asked about seasonal timing and participant mix. Ledwith said the September timing captured student traffic returning to school and a costume-swap component that boosted early interest; she cautioned that a winter date might reduce turnout but said strong community demand would likely persist year-round.
Next steps: staff will continue to refine partnerships and logistics and bring operational recommendations back to the commission when funding and venue options are vetted.
