Dearborn Extends Yard Waste Pickup to Dec. 17
Last Pickup for Leaves Raked in Street is Friday, Dec. 3
The City of Dearborn is reminding residents that curbside yard collection will take place on trash days until Friday, Dec. 17, weather permitting. That means residents can place yard waste, including leaves, in proper containers on scheduled trash days through the week of Dec. 13-17.
Yard waste pickup continues through Dec. 17, weather permitting.
The 2010 City of Dearborn calendar states that the curbside collection of yard waste will end on Friday, Dec. 3, but that information is outdated.
The City extended the curbside yard waste collection season when it chose a new trash, recycling and yard waste collection contractor in the summer. The extended season is part of the City’s expanded curbside service made possible by the new contract.
Residents are reminded that yard waste must be properly bundled. It also must be in a properly marked 32-gallon container or paper landscape bag. Yard waste in plastic bags will not be picked up.
The City’s loose leaf collection of leaves raked into the street is scheduled to end Friday, Dec. 3.
However, residents may still bag leaves and place them in proper containers on their trash day the week of Dec. 13-17 as part of the curbside collection service.
November 30th, 2010 at 12:49 pm
The loose leaf collection is a HUGE waste of money. People need to simply bag the leaves in paper landscape bags. I seriously think it takes more time and energy to rake all the leaves to the curb vs. raking and bagging the leaves in sections of your yard.
The curbside pickup is bad because:
1) leaves still blow all over the place while waiting for the trucks to come
2) the streets aren’t even that clean after the huge trucks come through
3) simply put, the cost outweighs the benefits of this program
There is significantly more value behind using these funds for something more valuable for the city, or dare I say, eliminate city spending.
December 1st, 2010 at 9:20 am
As Nobama states, if it saves other programs or amenities, as much as I do like the leave program, I am all for eliminating it and any other service that can contribute towards saving pools, libraries, amenities and other things.
December 2nd, 2010 at 9:13 am
I’ve been published here, before, stating that the curbside pick-up is not effective nor efficient including reasons why it is so.
Including the reasons previously stated above, piles of leaves on the curbside are a driving hazard. Many a time I’ve needed to drive over and through leaf piles on the right side of the street to steer clear of oncoming traffic. And yes, stopping becomes a hazard, even at speeds under 20 mph when leaves are wet.
More leaves and the remnants are blocking street sewer grates and entering the sewer system. The ponds on the street that arise from leaf-blocked sewer grates are an added bonus.
The added scraping of the street to pick up the leaves, wears out the street surface prematurely.
The fuel cost to provide this service is high.
As unpopular as this suggestion will be for most complaining entitled Dearbornites on this site, I am strongly for ceasing snow plowing and salting of neighborhood streets.
The surface of our street gets scraped up by blade as well as the snow, leaving behind the chunks, potholes and allowing water to seep into the street bed.
While Nobama makes a fair argument about leaf pick-up, and value for every tax dollar the City spends, the final phrase of the post is most unreasonable. The City must spend funds to operate. Mr Albano more succinctly states a shift of funds to other departments.
December 2nd, 2010 at 1:26 pm
To “pile on” what Nobama and Michael have already mentioned; we need to remember if piles of leaves remain in the street and freeze solid before the leaves are picked up, the piles make for nice obstacles for us to drive around and even run into. I gladly rake up my leaves and bag them. I am all for elimating the leaf pickup program if it means saving other things.
December 3rd, 2010 at 10:10 am
I rake and bag my own leaves but that still does not address the leaves that nature and traffic pile onto the roads. They have to go somewhere and the citizens cannot play dodge-em with cars to clean a public roadway. I hope the leaf bulk pickup ends but the city still has a responsibility to maintain their roadways.
December 3rd, 2010 at 10:18 am
I attended the monthly meeting this past Monday of the Dearborn Federation of Neighborhood Associations, the umbrella organization that oversees all 30 Dearborn Neighborhood Associations and the Mayor spoke of this very topic.
The mayor stated that there are some issues with expenses associated with the leaf pickup program, as well as stating that:
1) They city used to have each city truck that picked up the leaves travel to the dump individually, which cost the city time, labor and truck and loader expsense and now the city trucks all dump the leaves in a parks designated for such and nearest the area they pick up the leaves. The trash company as part of their contract at no additional expense to taxpayers, goes to these locations, loads up the leaves and takes them to the dump, which has resulted in approximately 16 less taxpayer paid, city employees having to drive them to dups, thus saving a large number of labor and equipment expenses and has also saved the city the dumping fee for each truck.
2) The city picking up leaves in the street helps the numerous disabled, weak and ill residents who cannot bag their own leaves.
3)If the city didn’t have this program, then the Mayor believes there are many residents who would just leave their leaves on their grass, which would result in far more leaves blowing all over the place and which could overwhelm the city with having to issue and follow-up on citations. As an added note: due to the budget, the city has 15 Residential Services – Field Inspectors, but has filled only 7 positions currently, with no immediate plans to fill the other 8 and Field Inspectors are the ones that oversee and cite owners for failing to pick up their leaves in residential areas.
The mayor did state that the city is still considering other options and will address anything else as/if the issues arise and one of those options is to weigh the expense of leaf pickup versus the expense of not having the program. Currently, the Mayor’s stated that he believes that not having a leaf pickup program will be far more costly to the city than having the newer model their are using, but that he is open to other better options, if there are any.
His words, not mine. Hope it helps.
December 3rd, 2010 at 4:15 pm
I can remember a few years back where someone parked their car on a pile of hot leave and the hot catalytic convertor caused the leaves to catch file. luckily someone saw it before it got out of hand and destroyed the car.
December 4th, 2010 at 11:43 am
Michael, thanks for providing the opposing view to keep the discussion fair. Here would be my rebuttal to the mayor:
1) while it’s good to have saved so much if in these are accurate facts, but let’s be real, the new contract does not pick up those leaves for free. It was part of the contract negotiation, and I can GUARANTEE you that the new vendor for leave pickup included the operating expenses for picking up leaves at the designated parks. Nothing if free big man. It would be nice to know how much in expenses (wages, vehicle maintenance, gas, etc) still exists for the program as it operates today.
2) citizens who fall in this category are likely not doing the raking themselves anyway, so I consider this a bit mis-leading on that basis. Besides, (using a little reverse tactic on this) if these same citizens are able to haul those trash cans to the curb each week, then I’m guessing they could gradually place leaves in a full bag that weighs probably less than half of the trash can
3) This might be a fair argument for keeping this service, but I just have a gut feeling that the number of people raking leaves today would not decline by a significant # if this service was cancelled. It’s not the curb side pickup that that causes people to rake, it’s a combination of a)good citizens maintaining their own property and b) the fear of getting a citication for those that just comply with the ordinance to avoid a fine. To address the expenses for field inspectors, make the fines of the non-compliant citizens cover the expenses for enforcing the ordinance. But the issue of vacant homes would need to be a topic, which I’m hoping the neighbors of vacant homes could pitch in for the overall good of the city. If I had a vacant home as my immediate next door neighbor, I would rake and bag the leaves.
December 4th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
Wow!
(Mr. Albano, you are the messenger, not the source of the comments. Thank you for posting these comments)
The first bullet-point addresses efficiency of the service. I applaud that. That change in procedure is a bonafide the step in the right direction.
The issue with the nebulous comment number 2 above, is numbers. How many residents are identified as ‘ill’, ‘weak’ to be eligible for this service? What is the cost to ‘healthy’ and ‘strong’ residents? What is the City’s distinction between ‘ill’ and ‘weak’ to fairly justify other residents to pay for this service?
Bullet-point number three is pure opinion without factual backing. What’s the difference between leaves on a lawn and leaves on the curb? Fact: Wind is going to move leaves in the same amounts no matter if they are on the grass or on curb. What are the numbers of households cited for not following procedures of the current leaf-removal program? Is there compliance? The issue is not the number of inspectors. The issue is the enforcement of current procedures.
I again, applaud the Mayor considering other options. I hope that is not an empty statement.
The final statement of having a leaf pick-up service vs. not having a leaf pick-up service is opinion, yet again, without hard proof.
What the Mayor’s statement does not completely address:
A) Homeowners/Landlord landscape services that regularly put leaves on the curb REGARDLESS of the scheduled pick-up date. I have observed on many occasions. Leaves raked/placed onto the curbside AFTER the scheduled pick-up.
Some of the neighbors on our street, including myself, sweep the curb, remove the leaves ourselves and place them in landscaping bags. Mulched leaves also make outstanding mulch for the garden.
December 4th, 2010 at 9:31 pm
Also, you can rake the leaves into a pile, run over the pile with a lawn mower and shred them. Is you have a garden, place the shredded leaves on your garden area and rake in with the existing soil. Composting is green!
December 5th, 2010 at 12:24 am
I love Albano’s posts,you always have to sort through them and cut through all of the administration spin.
This new method of picking up leaves using the garbage contractor is the same cost or if it turns out to be cheaper it will be minimal.
Its only common sense that the change to dump leaves in park parking lots instead of hauling them across town is more efficient,but why hadn’t that change been made years ago?
Who was in charge of that division to allow a nonsensical grossly inefficient system to go on for so long?
And where is that person now?
Everyone made valid points about the leaf program, but if they stop the program and then had that money to use elsewhere,does anyone really think it would be spent in a useful way to benefit us tax payers?
Like all government spending it would be spent on management wage increases,bad business investments,pension padding,law suit payoffs,consulting firms and more consulting firms to consult with the first consulting firm,get the point?
December 5th, 2010 at 10:58 pm
Leaf collection needs to stop. In a time when the City needs to cut services, it falls into the category of unnecessary services It is not a safety issue. It does not strengthen our neighborhoods and in no way is it necessary.
For the few who need help, many services are available. Earlier, Michael A. D. mentioned pools and libraries as good places for the money saved from eliminating this service. Pools definitely strengthen our neighborhoods and nopbody will question the value of the libraries. Libraries depend on a significant amount of volunteer work – how about setting up a volunteer program for those unable to rake and bag leaves?
Stop the leaf collection!!
December 6th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
The people who have enough pride in their home and consideration for their neighbors will continue to rake and put the leaves in the bags. The same lazy neighbors who won’t bag them, don’t rake them into the street either. Lazy and inconsiderate will not be impacted by the city not picking up leaves. If the city would rake their leaves into the street, come and pick them up and then hose their driveway for them, they would gladly watch from their porches. One of my lazy neighbors ALWAYS rakes his leaves into the street AFTER the last pick up. Every…single…year. STOP the leaf pick up.
After all of that…many of my neighbors have bagged their leaves and they did NOT get picked last Friday. As of Sunday, they were still sitting on on their curbs. What is up with that??
December 7th, 2010 at 12:35 pm
I, for one, appreciate it being able to rake the leaves in the street and hope the city keeps this program.
December 8th, 2010 at 1:06 pm
Why can’t you bag your own leaves Darren? Why can’t people realize that governments in general have spent money at unsustainable levels. You can’t get everything people. News flash here: if we continue to spend at current levels we will go into bankruptcy. Therefore, we need to be methodical in how we evaluate current services in order to determine the cost-benefit for each program. The huge expense for this service is an easy target to eliminate, because it’s not that big of a deal to buy $5 worth of paper bags to bag your own leaves. The societial notion that government’s role is to provide these types of services is mind boggling, and quite honestly, extremely harmful to the financial security of this great country.
December 9th, 2010 at 11:19 pm
I totally agree with Nobama & Noreilly,the people in this town have been spoiled for decades and its also part of the reason the city is going broke now. Just look at when 5 snow flakes hit the street and the city launches a full scale assault with salt trucks,its embarrassing.
Other cities hardly salt or plow their streets and many of those cities are more upscale than dearborn,how have the residents survived so long in those cities without having a an army of salt and plow trucks hitting their streets every time a little snow comes in?
I would love to see an accident comparison during the winter from other cities compared to dearborn,i bet there inst much difference in the amount of accidents so why are we wasting so much money salting and plowing?
Maybe if people bagged their leaves and the city didn’t salt and plow for 5 snow flakes the money saved could go toward our pools and libraries.
December 10th, 2010 at 9:51 am
Cleaning the streets with street-sweepers is done regularly in our town during the warm months. Although a good thing, this service costs money and seems to me to be less needed than leaf pickup.
My neighborhood had plenty of trees, although not as many as the area north of Michigan and between Telegraph and Outer Drive. Without the leaf pickup, I guess we would depend on citizens cleaning the street. Haphazard at best.
I must say that Anthony has taken this idea farther than anyone. He wants to eliminate snowplowing and salting. Anthony, do you drive a huge truck, that you don’t worry about being stuck in your driveway for weeks after a huge snow? If you drive through a Detroit neighborhood in winter, you will see what happens when snow is not plowed. It is not pretty. The streets become very slick and dangerous. Neighbors fight over cleared parking spots at the curb. I don’t want that for Dearborn.
December 10th, 2010 at 10:46 am
I agree with most all of the comments on here about rethinking whether or not we can continue to afford services and that us citizens are so spoiled with services and amenities. In all my years of research, I’ve never found any city that even comes close to the services, amenities and facilities Dearborn offers.
As far as snow removal when a bad snow comes, regardless of what statistics might state on accident rates her versus other cities that do not plow their side streets, this is a qualify of life issue that helps people not be tied to their homes or drive on hazardous roads. I have friends in the Bloomfield’s that tell me that when it snows hard, they are prisoners in their own homes.
As far as the leave pick-up program, if it saves the city a significant amount of money, I have no issue with the program ending, providing the city is going to have the residential field inspectors out making sure that owners who do not bag their leaves and leave their lawns and property a mess are going to be required to keep their property clean. But being down from 15 residential services field inspectors to 7 is not going to make that job easy.
With the task force report suggestions and a 2010 and 2011 fiscal years $20 million projected budget deficit each year, some things will have to be cut. That is unless taxpayers who are paying far less on property taxes are willing to approve a separate police, fire and EMS millage and taxpayers are willing to raise the 13.6 mills to 15 mills or higher. We can’t have it all without someone paying for it and since significant property tax revenue declines have devastated Dearborn, there aren’t a lot of other options. Just an FYI, our property taxes used to be $3200 per year and now they’re down to $2400 per year, add in 59,000 homes in Dearborn alone and using even a $400 average per home, this is $23,600,000 the city has LOST in residential property tax revenue, which is more than the budget deficit. This is not counting commercial property.
December 11th, 2010 at 4:48 pm
When will the city and council decide that it’s time to take a stand. They will mickey mouse around and they will be afraid to cut anything. The whole thing is very simple – they have X amount of dollars coming and they should only be spending that X amount of dollars. Can you imagine if each one of us ran our budgets the way they do????
December 12th, 2010 at 12:30 am
I don’t think i have a problem with the city plowing huge amounts of snow that will enable people to leave their homes. I think the problem is when i always see an army of trucks out salting with not much snow down,it seems like they do every single street and parking lot,how much is that costing?
It also seems like the trucks with those expensive apparatuses on the back are too big to use up and down side streets here, I dont even see trucks that big with those on the major freeways, and when i travel to big cities ive never seen big trucks like those with that set up in the back.
It seems like another poor decision and a huge unnecessary waste of money. If the city is broke and the mayor wants to close pools and libraries,how does it make sense to keep continuing to salt and plow the city in the same manor as when the city had a surplus?
In other cities they just salt and plow the main routes for emergency vehicles and certain streets that have traffic lights at the end of them,wouldn’t we expect a city that says they are broke to make those types of changes?
December 13th, 2010 at 3:16 pm
Hey D.O.
1) I drive a mid-sized pick-up because sometimes I have to pull a trailer for work.
2) “stuck in the driveway for weeks”???? Nice hyperbole. Are you saying you want the city to plow your driveway, too?
3) Dearborn already resembles Detroit thanks to the mortgage crooks, greedy flip agents, greedy landlords. Snow plowing isn’t going help.
4) Unplowed streets dangerous?? Are you trying to scare me? Really? You ever heard of ‘driving prudently’? Probably not.
5)Neighbors fighting over parking spots? What rock do you live under? It already happens here in good weather as the ‘entitled elite’ claim their ‘parking space’ (on a public street mind you) right in front of their house.
C’mon. You can do better. Why don’t you go spend some of that pension loot over at Dee’s and get some Christmas cards.
Merry Christmas.
December 14th, 2010 at 11:33 pm
A lot of mention here about the zealous snow cleaning crew – looks like they read this and took it to heart. I have never seen Dearborn streets so neglected as these past few days. Streets are not cleaned of snow and are very icy and slippery. This is a safety hazard – even if we do drive prudently, Anthony. When streets are icy and slippery for the residents they are the same for police and fire. This is not good and I hope we are not cutting this service – it is far more valuable than leaf collection or a City calendar. City Hall needs to get there stuff together and start making a sensible list of services and prioritize properly.
December 15th, 2010 at 3:16 pm
Marge:
This was an out-of-the-ordinary, extreme weather event. Rain, rain/snow mix, snow, combined with a rapid drop in temperatures and 30mph winds happening within 48 hours. Macomb and Oakland Co road commissioners were on TV saying that it was too cold to salt…it wouldn’t have been effective. You couldn’t salt prior to the event as the salt would have washed away.
Neglected? Hardly. In my neighborhood: The City plows came by at 5am Monday. (normal) Tuesday the residential intersections were salted. (normal) Today/Wednesday temps warmed a bit and the roads are much improved.
I recommend you to take a visit to your friendly neighborhood fire station, 1,2 or 3. Ask any first responder about the capabilities of their equipment in snow. All vehicles have the weight, mass and power to get through most any road conditions short of a washout, earthquake or fallen tree. In addition, first responders are trained for driving in many hazardous road conditions. But, don’t take my word for it. Become informed. Our fire department is one of, if not, the best in the State of Michigan and they will gladly put your concerns at ease. They, and their equipment will get to you no matter the road conditions.