Brush Pickup

The purpose of operational standards for the removal of yardwaste, is to remove branches, brush, and Christmas trees from the landfill stream and reduce fire hazards in the City and to balance health and aesthetic performance with operational and budget constraints.
The main needs associated with this solution are to provide residents with a means to meet the statutory requirement to remove yardwaste from the landfill stream and the city ordinance to not burn yardwaste in the City. The City opted for two annual free brush pickups and monthly fee based pickups. The program use to require a truck and a chipper with at least two laborers to drive up and down both sides of every street in the city to determine where there was brush and then chip the brush. The City staff suggested the current program because the customer calls and provides an address that the crew can drive directly to and eliminates the time, gas and “wear and tear” on equipment which with the cost of gas was pressing budget constraints. The small fee was used to encourage customers with small amounts of brush to haul it to the yardwaste center themselves. The City also provides an annual Christmas tree pickup early in January. Occasional the City provides free citywide pickup due to weather related conditions.
The staff has completed the spring brush pickup for 2011. The question has been asked if the City would provide an additional pickup because the poor weather this spring has delayed spring cleanup for many residents. The Council would need to determine if this is a weather related pickup that falls under the current policy or if there needs to be a modification of the current policy.