Winter grime, trash, pollutants, Red Line construction, litter, Village clutter! The seasons have changed and it's time to Spring Clean.

This is my rant about Broad Ripple pride! Everyone is the area - residents, business people, and visitors reading this column should desire to care for and tend to our thriving community. Picking up litter, and never even making litter, is a huge step towards displaying a tidy, vibrant community. I know we will have issues with the Red Line construction adding to dust, dirt, and confusion, so let's all take a step towards working harder at community cleanliness this year.

You can make a difference. One of the most interesting projects is a take-off on the White River yearly river bank clean-up event (www. friendsofwhiteriver.org). Find an unsightly location and take a photo of the mess. Bring bags and gloves and spend an hour or two cleaning it up. Take another photo. Post your civic good works on Facebook or Instagram! Share it on the Broad Ripple Village Association Facebook page. You will be appreciated. You can also round up your group (Boy Scouts, church, baseball team, dance, dinner club) and make it an event to tidy up a corner of Broad Ripple. When done, celebrate at Brics or a favorite watering hole.

For residents in the area, clean up and fix up yards and alleys. If you see an eyesore, report it. Hopefully you may feel the urge to help a neighbor that can't do the physical labor. Good neighbors make good neighborhoods. Unstick a drainage sewer, pick up trash, mow an extra lawn, gift a pretty flower planter. There are so many things neighbors can do to shoulder the entire block's image to all who walk or drive down Broad Ripple streets.

For businesses, you have opportunities to participate. Without Linda at Marigold's, Broad Ripple would not have the meander garden along the trail leading to the Art Center. This is an great example of one person making a difference. Keep your sidewalks and yards clean and in good repair. Be sure the rear of your establishments are kept clean of trash and garbage. Rats are encouraged enough by the water of the canal and the river that humans don't need to tempt them even more with waste. Make it a task of an employee to keep your grounds clean. Every business owner should take time to approach their business from the front and the rear at different times of the day to see what your customers see. Making a good impression starts at street side!

For guests in Broad Ripple, we hope you enjoy your visit! Please don't empty your cigarettes on parking lots. Dispose of cans and cups in containers. Ask shop owners to throw away trash you may have acquired during your visit. Leave the Village clean for others to enjoy. Make a special effort to keep the Trail clean and beautiful for all. This also applies to all areas of White River and the canal. Some litter never deteriorates and can be found years later, washing up on the banks. Also graffiti is not welcomed. Use your artistic tagging on canvases or board, not on businesses.

This is truly a finger wagging column. Pick it up, dispose of things correctly, make beauty not ugliness. We all are responsible and if you see something like a bottle or trash, make it a point to clean it up!

P.S. An ongoing bad habit of trashing out the environment is dumping wrong items at the Broad Ripple Park Recycling bins. Don't dump! We don't want to lose this important service at the park.