Lend a hand with a different kind of spring cleaning in Tampa Bay

We’re talking pinking up trash out of our waterways and streets + other ways to beautify our area.

A close-up of a water bottle on the beach. Someone is picking it up and putting it in a trash bag.

You can keep our Tampa Bay area beautiful by signing up for local cleanup events. | Photo by Marta Ortigosa via Pexels

Spring officially begins on Tuesday, March 19, and with it an entire season dedicated to new beginnings, growth, and... cleaning. After you’ve tackled clearing out that bedroom chair and dusting those baseboards, consider cleaning the outdoors — otherwise known as Tampa Bay’s playground:

  • Shuffle Takes Out The Trash | Saturday, March 9 | 9 a.m.-12 p.m. | Shuffle, 2612 N. Tampa St., Tampa | Free | Help clean the Heights’ streets + score a trashy shirt and a free beer — plus, the person who finds the most interesting piece of debris wins a gift card to the Shuffleboard spot.
  • Florida Learning Garden Cleanup Day | Saturday, March 9 | 9 a.m.-12 p.m. | Florida Learning Garden, 4800 US 301, Tampa | Free | Join Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful for a day of planting, harvesting, and weeding at the one-acre interactive educational garden — please wear hats, sunglasses, and sunscreen.
  • Great American Cleanup at Fort De Soto Park | Saturday, March 16 | 9 a.m.-12 p.m. | Fort De Soto Park, 3500 Pinellas Bayway S., Tierra Verde | Free | Take part in the nationwide community improvement program by helping clean up Pinellas County’s largest park — make sure to register.
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