2012 Dearborn Leaf Pickup Starts Monday

Grab your rakes, Dearborn!

Dearborn's annual collection of loose leaves raked into the streets is scheduled to begin the week of Oct. 22 and end on Friday, Dec. 7, depending on the weather.

To make it easier for crews to pick up the leaves and to keep streets safer, residents are encouraged to rake leaves into the street only on the day before their neighborhood’s Public Service Days. Leaves raked into the street will be picked up on a neighborhood’s trash day, on the week that is not a recycling week.

Public Service Days are the same as trash collection days. Vehicles must be removed from streets on these days between 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

Contractors paid by residents to rake leaves must follow the same guidelines and should not rake leaves into the street until the day before the appropriate Public Service Day.

Due to the volume and size of Public Service Day districts, crews may not be able to pick up all the loose leaves in a neighborhood on the designated Public Service Day/trash collection day. According to the city, they will return where they left off during that district’s next trash day that is not on a recycling week.

Crews expect to be in every district collecting leaves raked into the street at least two times during the fall season.

For a weekly leaf collection schedule, call the Leaf Hotline at 313-943-2444.

Avoid raking leaves into the street too early, as leaves left to pile up in the street for days before scheduled collection can present traffic and safety hazards.

Leaves also can be disposed of by putting them in 20-32 gallon containers marked “Yard Waste” or in paper landscape bags for curbside pickup on regular trash collection days every week until Dec. 16.

Bagging them or putting them in the proper containers on the curb will ensure that they are picked up every week on your trash day. In contrast, loose leaves raked into the street in front of your house are only picked up as crews can get to them.

The city’s curbside yard waste collection program ends on Dec. 16.

Yard waste stickers to mark your containers are available at Dearborn City Hall and any Dearborn library. Paper yard waste bags do not need stickers.

Leaves in plastic bags or in cardboard boxes will not be picked up.

City Saves on Leaf Removal Services

Joining a host of other public works services that are now contracted out—including street sweeping and turf maintenance—City Council on Oct. 9 voted to award a contract for bulk loose leaf pick-up and disposal for 2012.

The measure is expected to save the city around $100,000.

Leaf removal from streets will still be completed by Republic Services; however, Bedrock Express will now be responsible for the removal of leaves from stockpiled locations.

The service is expected to cost $94,749; Republic previously completed the job for around $200,000 annually.

City officials discussed ending leaf removal services in 2011, but the idea was nixed because it was felt by some on council that requiring residents to bag all their leaves would be too difficult to enforce for not enough cost savings.