Free Brush Pickup Set to Begin, With Changes

The village’s free brush pickup service begins again in April, but there have been a few changes to the program, designed to streamline it and make it safer.

The village’s will pick up brush during the first full week of each month, from April to October. That means the service starts up again next week, and will be provided during the weeks of May 2, June 6, July 4, August 1, September 5 and October 3.

Your brush must be stacked up in the parkway by the Sunday night of that week to get picked up. It should be neatly piled, all in one direction, and unbundled. Branches shouldn’t be less than 1 inch in diameter, and not more than four inches in diameter.

Brush collection will begin on Monday, weather permitting, and will continue until all the brush in the village has been picked up.

So far, that’s all the same as it was last year. But here’s where the changes kick in.

In past years, the village required brush branches to be no more than five feet in length. This has been changed – the branches can now be any size you like, as long as they’re at least three feet long.

The reason for this, Public Works Director Mike Pubentz said, is safety – residents won’t have to cut branches any more, and village workers will be able to stay farther back from the chipper while loading in the larger branches.

Gone as well is the limit on how large your brush pile can be. As long as it is no higher than three feet, the pile can fill the entire parkway in front of your property, as long as it does not obstruct the sidewalk.

Village workers will no longer pick up smaller piles of twigs and tree trimmings, Pubentz said. Instead, you can put those into yard waste bags, and Allied Waste Services will pick them up. Allied will take one 30-gallon yard waste bag each week between April and November at no additional cost, Pubentz said.

If your brush pile is not picked up, a notice will be left behind explaining why. As in past years, brush pickup is only available at residences, not commercial properties.

Pubentz presented the changes to the Village Board Monday night, and they met with approval from the trustees.