2025 At-A-GlancE

Thank you for supporting Keep Akron Beautiful (KAB). We appreciate your civic pride and love for Akron. KAB remains the only organization in Akron dedicated to picking up litter, removing graffiti, and planting flowers on public land. As a small nonprofit with a small budget, we rely on community-minded donors to help keep our city neat, clean, and beautiful. Without strong support, graffiti would go unaddressed, flowers would not be planted, and litter would quickly take over our neighborhoods.

Your investment in Keep Akron Beautiful helps us fulfill our mission of improving Akron’s quality of life through beautification and responsible environmental management. Together, we are showcasing the best of Akron and creatin a lasting, positive impact on our community. In 2025, your support made the following possible:

Removing Akron’s Litter – 

  • 80.20 tons of litter were collected by KAB’s daily litter crews
  • 431 tires were collected and properly disposed of
  • 21 illegal dump sites were cleaned up
  • KAB had a 46% increase in community service workers from 2024 to 2025 (230 workers in 2024; 335 workers in 2025)
  • Volunteer engagement significantly supplemented daily operations. During Clean Up Akron Month (April 2025), 836 volunteers removed 23.7 tons of trash and 85 tires. During the remaining 11 months of the year, an additional 420 volunteers removed 21.6 tons of trash through neighborhood cleanups and illegal dumping remediation. This number does not reflect all of the volunteers that KAB provides supplies for, that dispose of trash at their own homes.
  • In 2025, Keep Akron Beautiful abated 273 graffiti tags throughout the City of Akron and responded to 10 graffiti-related 3-1-1 complaints. KAB utilized pressure washing, chemical removers, and paint matching to efficiently restore affected public spaces. 
  • Capital Investment – Dump Truck: After 2.5 years of fundraising, KAB purchased a dump truck in late August 2025, resulting in faster response times to illegal dumping and 3-1-1 complaints and increased daily productivity during the fall season. This investment strengthens KAB’s ability to deliver more services while improving operational efficiency.

Beautiful Blooms –

  • Keep Akron Beautiful (KAB) prepped, planted, and maintained 20 Flowerscape sites throughout the City of Akron during the 2025 calendar year. Crews were deployed consistently throughout the growing season (April–October) to ensure proper maintenance of all assigned public flower beds. KAB designed and installed a new Flowerscape at Route 59 and North Main Street at the Southwest corner. 
  • In addition, KAB partnered with local corporate sponsors to install spring daffodil bulb plantings at select locations, expanding seasonal beautification and increasing early-season visual impact across the city.
  • KAB supported 64 volunteer groups in maintaining Adopt-A-Site gardens throughout Akron, exceeding minimum program expectations and fostering sustained neighborhood pride and ownership.

Recycle Right Campaign –

  • KAB managed the Recycle Right Campaign for 10 weeks (June–August 2025) in partnership with the City’s Sanitation & Recycling Division.
  • This work contributed to reduced contamination and improved recycling behavior and was cited as best practice when the City of Akron received the 2025 All-America City Award from the National Civic League. KAB was proud to have two employees, one board member and one community member join the City of Akron in Denver, CO for the All-America City Presentation.

Beautification Projects –

  • 90 volunteers canvassed 45 routes equating to 360 volunteer hours logged
  • 4,338 Beautification Watch Award certificates were signed by the Mayor of Akron, President of Akron City Council, and Chair of the KAB Board and sent to residents and businesses. These awards reinforced civic pride and community recognition.

Planting Change –

  • Planting Change: Partnered with Akron Public Schools, Davey Tree, and Vizmeg Landscaping to plant trees on school campuses.
  • Arbor Day: Celebrated Arbor Day with education and tree planting at Joy Park in partnership with the Mayor’s Office.
  • Hosted a fundraising event: “Treevia” to raise fund to plant trees on private property in Akron.

Social Media –

  • Keep Akron Beautiful uses social media as a key outreach tool to engage residents of all ages across the city while also sharing best practices and successes with fellow affiliates in the Keep America Beautiful network.
  • In 2025, social media supported KAB’s mission by promoting volunteer efforts, sharing recycling education, highlighting beautification programs, and increasing public awareness through creative and engaging content, including weekly features such as “Woodn’t You Know Wednesday”, volunteer spotlights, educational posts, and short-form videos of staff and volunteers in action.

Between January 1 and December 31, 2025, KAB’s social media platforms:

  • Reached 291,000+ views on Facebook and 58,000+ views on Instagram
  • Generated 6,700 interactions on Facebook and 1,600 interactions on Instagram
  • Gained 280+ new Facebook followers and 468 new Instagram followers
  • These platforms continue to serve as an effective tool for community engagement, education, and visibility of City-supported programs.
Your support of Keep Akron Beautiful is an investment in the health, safety, and pride of Akron. Without KAB, thousands of volunteers and community service workers would lack a coordinated effort to keep our city clean. The tons of trash removed by our team would still be in our streets, parks, and neighborhoods.
Regular cleanup and beautification are essential to preserving Akron’s quality of life. Cleaner neighborhoods experience less illegal dumping, fewer burglaries, and significant reductions in violence. Your generosity helps create safer, stronger, and more resilient communities across Akron.
Thank you for believing in our mission and for helping us keep Akron beautiful.