Fountain Creek clean up set for Monday after growing concern from businesses and residents

PUEBLO, Colo.(KRDO) -- The City of Pueblo has scheduled a clean-up and outreach effort at Fountain Creek to address the growing concerns of trash and individuals experiencing homelessness at the river bottom.

Pueblo Police said they have not done this big of a clean-up on Fountain Creek in years.

They're going to have front-end loaders and dumpsters out there to clean up the area. They're also going to make sure they clean up any needles lying around in the area.

"Sometimes they're needles that are used in the consumption of narcotics, and sometimes those are just left lying around. I know many people throughout our community have experienced that, and we're trying to make it again safe for anybody that wants to travel along that area and utilize that area, " said Cpt. Dustin Taylor of the Pueblo Police Department.

In addition to the clean-up, community partners will work to speak to and provide outreach for the people down at the river bottom experiencing homelessness in order to better meet their needs and connect them with resources.

Pueblo Police said it's really important to connect people experiencing homelessness with resources, especially as were headed into the colder months.

Pueblo Police told KRDO that they started notifying people along the river bottom well before the clean-up date.

"We've been out notifying those that are staying along that river that we're going to be out doing this cleanup. Our goal isn't just to displace them. We want to make sure that when they understand that we're going to be coming through to help clean up the trash that's along there, but also get them in contact with resources here in the community that can help them if they need a place to stay," said Taylor.

According to the city of Pueblo, the area at Fountain Creek has been identified as a concern for City Officials. Code Enforcement has taken the lead to help organize the team of community partners to assist with the efforts for the clean-up because of the high concern with this area along the river bottom.

The clean-up will begin on October 17th.