City of Lima prepares for leaf pickup

LIMA, OH (WLIO) - The City of Lima is getting ready to start its leaf pick-up program and asking residents to prepare.

With the windy start of November, many trees have lost their leaves, and lawns are ready to be raked. Street crews will be starting on Monday, November 18, 2024, with leaf removal. Residents are asked to rake leaves and only leaves to the curb lawn and to not put leaves in the street. To speed up the process, crews use several methods of removal.

"So while we have this leaf machine is in certain wards picking up leaves, we also have a front-end loader out in another ward picking up leaves and a tractor in another area. So it's like three different mechanisms we use to pick leaves up," explained Warner Roach, deputy public works director for the City of Lima.

First on the list are the first, fourth, fifth, and sixth wards, again starting on the 18th. Pickup for the second, third, and seventh wards will follow. They will be giving weekly updates on their social media. You can also bag your leaves and sit near the curb with your regular trash pickup.

November 6, 2024, Press Release from the City of Lima: The City of Lima, Public Works Department is gearing up for this year’s leaf pickup program. This year’s program is scheduled to start the week of November 18, 2024.

Starting on November 18, 2024, residents of the first, fourth, fifth, and sixth wards are asked to rake and pile leaves to the curb lawn – not in the street. Pickup in the second, third, and seventh wards will occur as crews progress.

As the leaves have already started to fall, small accumulations of leaves may be bagged and placed out with the regular trash pickup. Prior to the start of pickup, large amounts of tree and leaf debris can be taken to the Lima Compost Facility located at 1227 East Hanthorn Road.

Residents will need to show a copy of their water bill to be able to access the Compost Facility.

Residents are requested to follow these helpful hints when raking their leaves:

• Rake all leaves to the curb lawn, not in the street. Our crews have the equipment to rake them from the curb lawns. When leaves are raked into the street, vehicles break them down and this creates problems with pickup. This also creates a safety hazard as children playing in the street are not noticeable by drivers.
• Make sure all piles of leaves are free of rocks, junk, grass clippings, limbs, and other debris.

Residents are requested to refrain from piling leaves on the curb lawn other than their scheduled ward pickup. Once leaf pickup has started, weekly updates will be provided through the media so residents can anticipate the arrival of city work crew.