(New Orleans, LA) Mayor C. Ray Nagin today asked for volunteers to participate in another city-wide clean-up effort along Canal Street, one of the city’s major business thoroughfares. Trick-or-Treat—Let’s Clean Canal Street is the theme for Saturday’s clean-up.

“Canal Street is one of our vital commercial corridors,” Mayor Nagin said. “Our focus is to get our businesses up and running to help bring New Orleans back.”

Volunteers will work on Canal Street all day Saturday, October 29, 2005. Participants will meet at the Aquarium of the Americas at 1 Canal Street at 9 a.m. Volunteers are asked to bring gloves, brooms, dust pans, rakes and garden clippers; other cleaning supplies will be provided. The National Guard is partnering in these efforts by providing manpower and water to assist volunteers. Community partners include WWL-Radio, B (97), New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau, Downtown Development District, Keep Louisiana Beautiful and Marlin Energy.

Canal Street business owners are asked to put all wooded debris, white goods (refrigerators), household hazardous materials and solid waste garbage in separate piles on the curb. Everything except mattresses will be picked up.

There will be no parking on Canal and Poydras Street between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday. Residents and business owners are asked to move cars to allow for debris removal.

For more information, please contact the Mayor’s Press Office at (504) 799-5464.