Additional Leaf Collection Scheduled Week of November 27

The Public Works Department began its annual curbside leaf collection program on October 16, 2023. Each of the eight zones within the Village received two scheduled pickups, in addition to a final all zone sweep conducted the week of November 13th. Due to the warmer-than-usual weather this fall, many leaves had not fallen in time to meet the November 13th sweep. As a result, one additional leaf collection will be conducted the week of November 27th. No additional pickups after this special collection will be considered.

All zones must have their leaves raked into the street and ready for pickup by 7:00 AM on Monday, November 27, 2023. Crews will start the special pickup on Monday and continue throughout the week until all leaves have been collected. Collection is anticipated to finish by Friday, December 1st. Only one pass down each street will be made. All regular guidelines must be followed to have your leaves collected. Visit our Leaf Collection Guidelines page to review the program rules.

SPECIAL COLLECTION CRITERIA

The Village seriously considered three criteria before authorizing this special collection. The first is the leaf status. Once the final sweep was completed, Public Works inspected trees to assess how many leaves had not yet fallen. Had most of the leaves come down and been collected during the final sweep, this special collection would not take place. We also evaluated our winter preparedness. The same trucks and loaders used for leaf collection are part of our front line snow and ice control equipment. Historically the first snowfall occurs prior to Thanksgiving and it is critical that we have equipment ready to respond. When we look at protecting the public health, safety and welfare of our residents as our top priority, we see the snow removal effort as the higher priority over leaf collection. Lastly, the ten-day weather forecast as of Monday was checked to ensure no adverse weather is predicted for the week of November 27th.

HISTORY

2023 marks the tenth year since the Village reduced the number of scheduled zone collections from three to two, while maintaining one final all zone sweep. The final sweep was moved up one week to the week before Thanksgiving, with the scheduled collections taking place the four weeks prior to the final sweep. Making the final sweep one week earlier was to provide crews with enough time to convert the trucks over to snow plowing equipment. Previously, when the final sweep was done the Monday through Wednesday before Thanksgiving, not enough time was left to switch over all of the equipment before the first snowfall.

The equipment conversion process from leaf collection to snow and ice control is extremely time-consuming. It takes a six person crew approximately six hours to change a truck from leaf pickup to snow removal equipment. This includes inspecting and modifying the underbelly plow, and installing and calibrating the nose plow, the liquid de-icing tank, and the salt pan and spreader. The entire conversion of our snow removal fleet can take up to two weeks to complete as there are over 20 pieces of equipment to prepare. It is imperative that crews have enough time to install the equipment and ensure it is calibrated and functioning properly to be prepared for snow and ice control.

WHAT DO I DO WITH LEAVES AFTER THE SPECIAL COLLECTION?

Residents that have additional leaves to dispose of after this special collection must bag them for their weekly yard waste collection. Groot will continue to pick up bagged leaves and yard waste and bundled brush through the week of December 11th on your regular refuse collection day. No additional curbside pickups after the special collection will be conducted.

Village Ordinances prohibit placing leaves in the street outside of the leaf collection program. Citations will be issued to those residents who continue to place leaves into the street after the special collection has passed through their zone.

If you have any questions regarding the special collection or the leaf collection process, please contact the Public Works Department at (847) 705-5200.