Take a bite out of litter at Cowtown Great American Cleanup in Fort Worth
Tired of all that trash piling up all over the city?
Now’s your chance to do something about it while keeping Fort Worth beautiful.
Sign up for the 37th annual Cowtown Great American Cleanup, set for Saturday, March 26 from 8-11 a.m.
The Cowtown Great American Cleanup is the largest litter removal and beautification event of the year in Fort Worth. In 2021, volunteers removed more than 100,000 pounds of trash from the city.
You can sign up as an individual or as a group, including schools, churches and businesses.
Keep Fort Worth Beautiful (KFWB), the event sponsor, provides gloves and trash bags to all registered participants. T-shirts are also provided to the first 5,000 people who register.
Volunteers are encouraged to choose a location that is important to them, such as school campuses, creeks, empty lots and neighborhoods. KFWB also offers designated cleanup hubs, including the Trinity River, Lake Como and Echo Lake.
But what do you do with all that trash you’ve collected. If possible, take it to the nearest drop-off station.
You can also schedule a pickup with one of the collection crews. Call the Customer Call Center at 817-392-1234 or send an email to 1234@fortworthtexas.gov.
To register, go to fortworthtexas.gov/cowtowncleanup. For more information, call 817-392-1234 or send an email to KFWB@fortworthtexas.gov.
Fort Worth residents get last chance to weigh in on redistricting
The city of Fort Worth is looking for your feedback on its proposed redistricting map.
The proposed map increases the size of the city council from nine to 11 members, a change that was established in a 2016 charter election.
Officials have strived to reflect the city’s rapid growth and a more diverse population. The map creates five “minority opportunity districts,” or districts where 50% or more of the voting age population is Black, Hispanic, or made up of another minority community.
You can weigh in on redistricting on Tuesday, March 22 at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 200 Texas St.
Once the agenda is posted, you can register online at fortworthgov.legistar.com or call 817-392-6150.
The City Council will then conduct a special work session at 8:30 a.m. March 23 for redistricting map drawing before voting to approve the final map at its March 29 council meeting.
Jams will be flowing at African American Roots Musical Festival
Celebrate Black musicians and their work during the Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival on Saturday, March 19 at Southside Preservation Hall, 1519 Lipscomb St.
The festival focuses on old-time stringband music along with early blues and jazz, with performances by exclusively Black musicians.
The lineup includes Grammy Award-winning musician Justin Robinson, Canadian singer-songwriter and banjo player Kaia Kater, and banjo player and fiddler Jake Blount.
Musicians will delve into the roots of African American and indigenous stringband music.
Also on tap are artist conversations, dancing and a blues round table.
Doors open at noon and tickets range from $10-$40. To buy tickets, go to fwaamusicfest.com and click on the Tickets link.
What else is happening ...
▪ Budding artists can enter their work in the Mayor Mattie Parker High School Art Competition through April 4. High school artists in Fort Worth and surrounding areas are eligible. Top selections will be featured in a two-week exhibition at Fort Works Art Gallery, May 7-21. Parker will present awards on May 7. To apply, students must use a personal email address to sign up for a CaFÉ account. Go to fortworthtexas.gov/news/2022/3/Mayors-Art-Competition.
▪ Test your spelling skills at the Fort Worth Public Library’s Adult Spelling Bee, Sunday, March 20 from 3-5 p.m. at the Southwest Regional branch. The competition is open to ages 16 and older. Sign up for teams of 2-5 people by calling 817-392-5860 or stopping by the Southwest Regional library at 4001 Library Lane. The highest-scoring teams advance to a regional adult spelling bee in May against teams from other local public libraries.