Using two vacuum machines, Street Department crews will begin this year’s leaf collection service on Monday, October 23 in the southeast quadrant of the City (south side of Clinton Street to Kelley Road to the east side of Jackson Street).According to Street Superintendent Jason Forsythe, the smooth progress of Street crews’ collection service is largely dependent on a partnership forged with residents.
“As we do with many of our initiatives, we ask for and greatly appreciate residents’ assistance in working with us in this case – placing leaves as close to the curb as possible without putting them in the street. No other yard waste, including sticks and grass clippings should be in leaf piles because they will clog up our vacuums on the trucks and cause down time to repair.
“We also request that vehicles not be parked near the leaf piles so our vacuums can collect them easily and quickly. Leaf piles also need to be kept away from utility poles,” Forsythe said. “While we’ve had an unusually warm early fall, typical cooler temperatures are bound to arrive and stay so it’s a good time for business owners and residents to clean out curb gutters of all leaves near their properties so rain water can flow freely to sewer drains and reduce clogged drains that create ponding. Wet weather and our vacuum machines don’t work well together because wet leaves clog our vacuum lines.”
Reducing the amount of leaves in curb gutters frees up sewer maintenance employees from having to clean storm drains and allows them to concentrate on other duties.
Leaves, brush and grass clippings always can be brought to the Street Department’s compost site at 905 Burlington Avenue, Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on the first and third Saturdays of each month from 8:00 a.m. – noon year-round.
Updates on which section of the city crews will be collecting leaves can be found on the City’s Web site (frankfort-in.gov) and on the City, Street Department and Mayor’s Facebook pages.
Plans call for the leaf collection service to run through the end of November, depending on the level of activity in the coming weeks.