If you work in local government or public works, you already know that planning a major community event is no small accomplishment. The road closures, the permits, coordinating any vendors, public safety logistics & the incredible puzzle of creating parking… The list is long and everybody needs something from you in the weeks leading up to it. Street sweeping is rarely the thing keeping anyone up at night during that planning process, but we’re here to remind you that it shouldn’t be completely off your radar!

And then when the event happens, and the crowds finally go home, whomever is responsible for the streets the next morning is dealing with a mess that could have been a lot more manageable with a little bit of forethought.

We thought we’d give you our top To-Do’s that municipalities across Ohio should have figured out before their event starts, so that everything goes smoothly after it ends!

Sweep BEFORE the Event, Not Just After

Most municipalities think about cleanup after an event, and not everyone is thrilled with the idea of adding on any unnecessary costs for sweeping, but this one is important to consider. Fewer think about what the streets look like going into an event, but besides the obvious improved aesthetic, there are reasons that you really should sweep before! Streets that are already carrying accumulated debris going into a high-traffic event come out the other side in much worse shape than streets that were clean to begin with. All of that existing material gets ground in further by foot and vehicle traffic, pushed into gutters and catch basins, and if any rain shows up during or after the event, it all moves straight toward the storm drain system at once. The additional wear and tear on the asphalt will make cracks bigger and potholes worse than if the surface was clean to begin with. A pre-event sweep gives you a clean start, and will make the post-event cleanup faster & easier. But mostly importantly, there will be less damage to your existing asphalt, and if you’re hosting numerous parades or events per year this damage adds up! If your municipality operates under MS4 stormwater permits - which covers many Ohio municipalities - this sweeping can also contribute to the kind of documented stormwater management practices that matter at permit renewal time.

Know Where the Debris Is Actually Going to Land

Running a standard sweeping route before and after an event and calling it done isn't exactly a plan. We tend to be very thorough in our approach to sweeping strategy, and that thoroughness helps our clients stretch the longevity of their pavement and be truly prepared for their event. Different areas of your event footprint are going to take very different amounts of abuse. Food vendor zones, high foot traffic corridors, areas near portable restrooms, and streets that serve as primary parking routes are going to need the most attention - both before and after. Those are the spots where litter concentrates, where food waste ends up on the pavement, where ground-in debris becomes a slip hazard, and where catch basins are most likely to get overwhelmed if it rains before cleanup happens.

Make sure that you walk the event footprint with your sweeping contractor in advance, identify all of the problem zones, and build a plan around where the work actually needs to happen, rather than just where it's easy to get a truck down the street.

Stormwater Compliance Doesn't Take A Holiday Weekend Off

Ohio communities operating under MS4 permits have ongoing obligations to manage what goes into their stormwater system - and a major event that drops a significant debris load onto streets and into gutters without a cleanup plan attached to it can create real compliance problems, particularly if the event lines up with a rainy day.

Street sweeping is one of the most well-documented best management practices for keeping pollutants out of the stormwater system before they get there. Building a pre- and post-event sweep into your event plan is also building your compliance documentation. It shows that your community is managing its stormwater responsibilities proactively, which does matter when your MS4 permit comes up for review.

The Timing of Post-Event Cleanup Matters!

There's a big difference between sweeping streets twelve hours after an event ends and sweeping them two days later. Ground-in debris, dried food waste, and wet material that's had time to pack itself into gutters and storm drain approaches takes significantly more effort to deal with than fresh post-event debris that gets addressed quickly. If your event wraps up Saturday evening, Sunday morning is the window - not Monday when the regular traffic schedule kicks back in.

For municipalities that don't have their own sweeping capacity or equipment, this is exactly why having a contractor already lined up before event day is so important. Scrambling to find someone after the fact almost always means delays, and delays mean the cleanup job is harder and the community is looking at messy streets long after the event is over.

Don't Let the Parking Areas Fall Through the Cracks

Parking lots and temporary parking areas that serve your event take just as much of a beating as the streets themselves, sometimes more. They're also often privately owned or managed separately from municipal right-of-way, which means cleanup responsibility can get murky if nobody has talked about it in advance. Getting clarity on who handles parking area sweeping before the event starts - and making sure it's actually planned for - prevents responsibility issues between municipalities and property owners that nobody wants to deal with the week after a community event.

Have a Contractor Lined Up Before You Need One

The municipalities that handle event cleanup the best aren't the ones with the biggest public works departments. They're the ones that plan ahead. Having a reliable sweeping contractor on call before the event - someone who knows the footprint, knows the problem areas, and knows what time they're showing up the morning after - makes the whole thing go a lot more smoothly than trying to pull it together at the last minute! 



Site Sweep works with municipalities and local governments across Ohio, offering both scheduled and on-demand street sweeping. If you've got an event coming up and want to make sure the streets reflect well on your community before and after, check out our Service Area to see if we cover your town, make sure to check out more info about our Street Sweeping Services, or Contact Us to start putting a plan together.

And don't forget - the clean streets your community wakes up to the morning after a great event say just as much about your town as the event itself did.