# Lexington students clean up Gainesway Park to improve Tates Creek area  
**Published:** 2026-04-27T02:38:50.000Z  
**Source:** [LEX 18 News](https://www.lex18.com/news/covering-kentucky/lexington-students-organize-a-community-cleanup-at-gainesway-park-to-bring-positive-attention-to-area)  
**AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001)  
**Canonical:** https://feeds.lexingtonky.news/article/lexington-students-clean-up-gainesway-park-to-improve-tates-creek-area

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A group of Lexington students organized a community cleanup at Gainesway Park on Saturday to bring positive attention to the Tates Creek neighborhood and improve public spaces in the area, [according to LEX 18 News](https://www.lex18.com/news/covering-kentucky/lexington-students-organize-a-community-cleanup-at-gainesway-park-to-bring-positive-attention-to-area).

The Tates Creek Green Team and Gainesway Leadership Team partnered with [CivicLex](https://civiclex.org/) and Lexington Parks and Recreation to organize the cleanup effort. Volunteers began work at 10 a.m. and celebrated their efforts with a cookout later in the afternoon.

Tates Creek Middle School agriculture teacher Eli Parham, who has led the annual cleanup for years, emphasized the student-driven nature of the initiative. "My biggest goal is by kids for kids. This was led by the students, student initiative, plan," Parham said. "All I do is advocate for those students, make those community connections and bring those people together to make it happen for them."

The students behind the event said they wanted to showcase the positive developments occurring in their neighborhood rather than focus on negative perceptions of the area. Organizers indicated the cleanup is part of a broader effort to revitalize public spaces in the Tates Creek community.

Parham expressed optimism about expanding the initiative's reach. He said his goal is to increase community participation and eventually extend the cleanup efforts to encompass the entire neighborhood, building on the foundation established by student leaders and community partners.

## Sources

- [LEX 18 News](https://www.lex18.com/news/covering-kentucky/lexington-students-organize-a-community-cleanup-at-gainesway-park-to-bring-positive-attention-to-area)
- [CivicLex - Community engagement organization](https://civiclex.org/)

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This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from LEX 18 News. The original source is available at https://www.lex18.com/news/covering-kentucky/lexington-students-organize-a-community-cleanup-at-gainesway-park-to-bring-positive-attention-to-area.