Loose leaf collection starts Oct. 28 in DeKalb

The city of DeKalb’s annual loose leaf collection will begin Monday, Oct. 28, and continue through Friday, Dec. 6, weather permitting.

Leaves will be collected 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, starting on the south half of DeKalb and working north to Lincoln Highway, to the northern city limits, according to a news release.

Leaves should be raked into a narrow row parallel to the backside of the curb, so that vacuum trucks traveling curbside can pick up the leaves. Leaf piles must be free of debris, such as large tree branches and rocks. To help prevent street flooding, do not place leaves in the street.

The city expects to complete three to four collection cycles. To ensure all leaves are picked up by the final cycle, make sure the leaves are raked to the curb by 7 a.m. Dec. 2.

Schedule and locations change to accommodate weather conditions. City offices are closed and so there will be no leaf collection on Veterans Day on Monday, Nov. 11; Thanksgiving Day on Thursday, Nov. 28, and the day after Thanksgiving, Friday, Nov. 29.

Loose leaf collection will stop if it snows.

Lakeshore Recycling will also pick up leaves curbside on regularly scheduled garbage days, but leaves for that pickup must be placed in biodegradable yard-waste bags or open garbage cans. Leaves placed in plastic bags will not be collected.

For more information, contact the Public Works Office at 815-748-2040.