Community Forum on Mental Health
To help the community heal in the wake of two tragedies that hit Longmont recently, the City of Longmont will host a Community Forum on Mental Health from 6:30 to 8:30 pm on Monday, April 13, at LifeBridge Church, 10345 Ute Highway. There will be two presentations: “Understanding Mental Illness and Secondary Trauma” at 6:30 pm and “Suicide, Substance Abuse and Mental Health First Aid” at 7 pm. Local agencies will provide access to resources and information on mental health from 6:30 to 8 pm. This event is free and open to the public. For more information or to request language interpretation call 303-651-8445.

Free Shredding Event This Weekend
Recycle personal documents safely and securely. Bring boxed or bagged papers to the Waste Diversion Center at 140 Martin Street between 9 am and 2 pm on Saturday, April 11. Please bring identification and a copy of your most recent Longmont utility bill. This event is for residential documents only; no business materials will be accepted. For more information visit LongmontColorado.gov/solidwaste or call 303-651-8416.

Volunteer for Downtown Clean & Green
The Longmont Downtown Development Authority Clean & Green event is from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm on Saturday, April 18. Volunteers are needed to help clean up Main Street and around parking lots, alleys, breezeways, sidewalks, and other downtown structures. Come with a friend or form a team. Sponsorships are welcome. Breakfast, lunch, and t-shirts provided for volunteers. To sign up, call Del Rae at 303-651-8586, or email delrae.heiser@longmontcolorado.gov. For more information visit DowntownLongmont.com/Clean&Green.

4th Annual Longmont Library Festival
The 4th annual Longmont Library Festival: Celebrating Readers and Writers in Longmont continues through Saturday, April 18. This week, the festival features the release party for the Festival Anthology on Monday; author/illustrator Dorothy Donohue on Tuesday; OneBook4Colorado Storytime Celebration on Wednesday; TaraShea Nesbit, author of The Wives of Los Alamos, on Thursday; and the local Author Open House on Saturday. Visit LongmontColorado.gov/library for a complete schedule.

Citywide Spring Sweep Underway 
Each spring, the City of Longmont conducts a citywide street sweeping operation to remove dirt, debris and pollutants that build up during the winter months. Keeping the roadway in front of your house free of large objects and obstructions is the best way to assist street sweeping crews’ clean-up efforts. Visit bit.ly/sweepinglongmont to find out when the sweeper will be in your neighborhood.

Lend a Hand to “Clean-up, Green-up” 
Businesses, civic groups, schools, neighborhoods, families and individuals are invited to help spruce up Longmont. Volunteers can pick a park, greenway, street, alley or open space to clean up, or an area of need can be assigned. The Grand Kick-Off for the month-long campaign is from 7:30 to 10:30 am on Saturday, April 11, at the Parks Administration building, 7 S. Sunset Street. If you can’t participate on kick-off day, you can help “Clean-up, Green-up” through April 30. For more information, call 303-651-8955 or visit LongmontColorado.gov/parks.

Park Shelters to Open for the Season
Recreation & Golf Services is your one-stop shop for reserving a Longmont park shelter for birthday parties, family celebrations and summer picnics. The cost is $35 per day (resident fee) for most shelters and $25 per hour for the large shelter at Sandstone Ranch. Bouncy houses and inflatables are not allowed in City parks. For information about large events with more than 100 people, call 303-651-8404. Alcohol permits are available through the City Clerk’s Office at 303-651-8649 after your shelter has been reserved. Park shelters for April 15 through October 15 events can be reserved year-round at LongmontColorado.gov/park-shelters.

Recreation Master Plan Available for Public Comment
Now in Phase Three, the Parks, Recreation and Trails Master Plan invites public comment on the Longmont Recreation Master Plan.  Use links on the Parks, Recreation and Trails Master Plan page to download the plan document and submit comments by Friday, May 1, 2015.

Annual Curbside Tree Limb Collection
Place your bundled tree limbs at curbside by 7 am on the Monday of your scheduled collection week for pick-up during that week. For the week of April 13-17, collection are made south of 9th Avenue. Limbs must be bundled and cut into lengths no longer than 6 feet. No limb can be larger than 6 inches in diameter. For the full scoop and guidelines, visit longmontcolorado.gov/solidwaste or call (303) 651-8416.