2018-120 Keep Denton Beautiful InformationDate: September 7, 2018 Report No. 2018-120
INFORMAL STAFF REPORT
TO MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
Overview of Keep Denton Beautiful Funding and information on how other cities fund Keep
America Beautiful local affiliates.
SUMMARY:
The City of Denton has funded Keep Denton Beautiful since its inception in 1987. Keep Denton
Beautiful (KDB) staff were previously housed in Planning and Parks and Recreation. KDB staff
are now a part of the Solid Waste/Recycling budget. The KDB Division was moved to Solid Waste,
is closely aligned with the work of the department. The Fiscal Year 2017-2018 KDB Division
budget is $418,046.
KDB programs such as Great American Cleanup, Redbud Festival, Community Tree Giveaway,
Children’s Arbor Day, Yard of the Month, Adopt-A-Spot, and youth and neighborhood grants,
align with strategic goals of the City set forth in its Strategic Plan and other long-term planning
tools such as Simply Sustainable and Denton 2030.
Keep Texas Beautiful reported in 2017 that there were 155 active affiliates across the state.
Statewide, affiliates are generally organized and funded in three different ways:
A stand-alone nonprofit with no connection (monetary or otherwise) to the municipal
government. These affiliates are smaller and generally operate on a volunteer basis.
A city department without a nonprofit connection.
A hybrid organization with a connection to the City, either through direct budget
expenditure and/or staff, and a nonprofit arm.
KDB is a hybrid model, comprised of a City Division as well as a nonprofit agency. Of the 155
affiliates in Texas, eighteen of them operate as a hybrid like KDB, including Keep Allen Beautiful
and Keep Irving Beautiful. The remaining Keep Texas Beautiful affiliates are evenly split between
being a stand-alone 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and a City-funded operation. Due to the
missions of Keep America Beautiful and Keep Texas Beautiful focusing on beautification, litter
prevention, and recycling, affiliates are typically housed in solid waste, environmental services, or
code enforcement departments.
On September 25 the Denton City Council will be asked to consider adoption of a formal
agreement with the Keep Denton Beautiful to clarify the roles and responsibilities of City staff and
the Keep Denton Beautiful Board of Directors. To-date, the only feedback provided by the Board
of Directors is that they have forwarded the draft agreement to their attorney and will allow him
to respond moving forward.
STAFF CONTACT:
Katherine Barnett
Sustainability
940-349-2802