Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, August 21, 2015

Rat infestation is not a problem unique to Baltimore City by any stretch of the imagination. And since I was first elected to public office in 1995, there has never been a time when Baltimore’s citizens—myself included—have been satisfied with having to share our alleys and streets with rodents. In fact, I hate rats! 

As I have worked with our Department of Public Works officials on ways to attack this problem, I’ve learned that the most important step in ridding our streets of rats is eliminating their food source. We need residents to do their part by keeping tight lids on trash cans and picking up after pets—this will do more than anything we can do to eliminate these rodents.

About a year ago, we launched a pilot program that tested Municipal Trash Cans, hoping to promote cleaner neighborhoods and more efficient service. We are proud to say that the results confirmed what we thought: when residents have well-designed, well-built cans, Rat Rubout requests go down. So we think it’s time for all of Baltimore City to see these results firsthand.

Earlier this week, I announced that we will be soon issuing a Request for Bids to procure and deliver municipal trash cans to households throughout Baltimore. There will be no additional cost to the resident or property owner, and we are hoping to begin delivery of these new municipal cans early next year. 

Thanks to this innovative initiative, our neighborhoods will be cleaner and healthier, our employees will be safer, and our citizens will receive better, more efficient service. In short: this is a win-win-win for Baltimore City.

By working together and investing in our neighborhoods, I know that we can create a safer, cleaner, and more vibrant Baltimore.

This originally appeared in the Rawlings-Blake Review. If you do not receive the Mayor's weekly newsletter, subscribe here.