“I love San José: San José is my city,” the Costa Rican capital's new clean-up campaign slogan, was launched Monday by San José Mayor Maureen Clarke, along with the municipality's ¢43 billion ($78.18 million) budget, the highest in the city's history.

Five billion colones (just over $9 million), about 10 percent of the total, will go to dealing with San José's pollution problem. Clarke said the municipality plans to put this sum toward environmental education and management, as well as programs including street and river cleaning, tree planting, and garbage collection and treatment. The city plans to purchase six new garbage trucks, but according to Clarke, more trash collection is not the only solution.

“I believe that the amount of garbage in the city isn't due to the problem of garbage collection, but to a need to implement respect in our city, ” said Clarke. This instigated the launch of the “I love San José ” clean city campaign, with the slogan to be plastered on stickers throughout the city.

Previously deputy mayor, Clarke took the municipality's top seat when former Mayor Johnny Araya stepped down to begin campaigning for president.

Clarke announced that another 2 billion colones (more than $3.6 million) will be spent on road work projects, including plans to repave Avenida 10, between Calles 8 and 11, and other downtown streets badly in need of repair.

Aside from money to initiate new plans, the municipality has allocated funds for projects still under construction, such as the Paseo de Las Damas. The project is about 30 percent done, but the planned sidewalks, public and green spaces are still pending.

Revamps will also include making sidewalks throughout the city more accessible for the elderly and people with disabilities.

Clarke also said the municipality will continue its support for women seeking to enter the workplace or be promoted. Though she acknowledged Ticas have come a long way, the female mayor said it is 10 times harder for women to be considered as equals in the workplace, and “300 times harder as a politician.”