Leaves, Yard Waste & Snow

Leaves

During the fall season, residents can rake leaves to their tree lawn for collection by the city. The Service Department makes every effort to cover the entire city for leaf pickup every 10 business days. Your tree lawn may suffer some minor damage from leaves left for an extended period of time, but it will rebound.

Things to Keep in Mind

  • Do not place leaves in the roadway as it creates a hazard for vehicles and children and can cause flooding.
  • Fire hydrants should be unobstructed within three feet.
  • Sewer grates and curbs should be kept clear of leaves to allow water drainage.
  • Do not park cars in front of leaf piles, because the leaf crews will not be able to collect them.

Once leaf pickup is completed in December, you can place leaves and yard waste in your refuse container for weekly pickup, or plastic garbage bags or cans for the scheduled monthly Bulk Pickup.

Yard Waste

  • Republic Services collects yard waste in paper lawn bags or yard waste cans curbside from mid-April through the first week of December. See the Refuse Collection Schedule linked at the left for specific dates. Place paper lawn bags and yard waste cans within 3 feet of the curb after 5 pm on the day before collection and by 6 am on the morning of collection. Please remove empty containers within 12 hours of collection.
  • Christmas trees are collected in January and February.
  • Note: Landscaping contractors are responsible for removal of debris, including branches, grass, and leaves.
  • Off Season Yard Waste Disposal Options: Once yard waste collection has ended for the season, brown paper yard waste bags or cans marked Yard Waste will not be collected. Please place yard waste in your blue trash cart for weekly pickup, or place out in large black plastic garbage bags on Bulk pickup days only until yard waste collection resumes in the spring. 

Brush Collection

  • Brush collection continues year-round.
  • Bundle branches in 3-foot to 4-foot lengths.
  • Bundles or sections of brush should not exceed 60lbs so that one person can lift it into the collection truck. 
  • Root balls should be cut from the trunk and not exceed 60lbs.  Root balls that contain excessive amounts of dirt will not be collected.
  • Place bundles on the tree lawn near the curb, parallel with the street but not in the street. 
  • Only brush is collected, not lumber or construction materials.
  • Contractors must dispose of their own project-generated brush.

Snow Removal

The city removes snow from streets as quickly as possible, starting with main streets then progressing to side streets, and finally cul-de-sacs and dead-end streets. The city also follow sensible salting protocols to protect Lake Erie.

Things to Keep in Mind

  • Homeowners are required to clear snow and ice from their sidewalk within 24 hours per city ordinance.
  • Please place trash and recycle cans on the tree lawn or in your driveway only. Placing them in the street creates an obstacle for snow plows.
  • During heavy snow events, the city may enforce a street parking ban per Ordinance 351.14. When the ban is in effect, an Emergency Alert banner appears at the top of the city website pages. You can also sign up to receive notices about snow parking bans through Ready Notify-CodeRED.

Did You Know

The same trucks are used for both leaf collection and snow removal. This can cause delays in the late fall and early winter while the trucks are converted from one function to the other.