For decades, discussion of ending the loose leaf collection service was considered the third rail by Greensboro city councilmembers.
In the past, councilmembers said that they received more calls, emails and letters opposed to ending loose leaf collection than any other topic that had ever come before City Council.
Now it appears that loose leaf collection will soon be a thing of the past.
At the Thursday, Aug. 10 work session, the Greensboro Field Operations Department presented the plan it recommends for collecting leaves and other yard waste going forward.
One of the reasons given for ending loose leaf collection is that “It is difficult to attract and retain temporary workers.” Another is that long cold and wet winter weather slows the loose leaf collection process, forcing the city to extend the timeline for the program and forcing residents to wait longer to have their leaves collected.
The presentation also noted that only 40 percent of the residents use the loose leaf collection program.
What Field Operations recommends is that each resident be provided with one 95-gallon yard waste bin, similar to the garbage and recycling bins that the city currently provides to residents.
Plastic yard waste bags would be banned and only yard waste in biodegradable paper bags would be picked up by the city. Residents would be limited to 10 biodegradable paper bags plus their yard waste bin per collection. Field operations recommends that during “leaf season,” the limit for residences be raised to 15 bags.
The report notes that Charlotte and Durham do not have loose leaf collection programs. Charlotte has outlawed plastic bags for yard waste collection and residents must use paper bags or reusable bins.
Durham uses residential carts and yard waste bags and offers a subscription based yard waste service.
Raleigh does offer a loose leaf collection program, but has also provided 95-gallon yard waste bins. Residents may also use paper yard waste bags with a limit of 15 bags per collection. Raleigh has outlawed plastic yard waste bags.
Great let’s end that program. Will we get our taxes lowered accordingly
Another example of the city trying to screw the citizens due to the fact they do not know how to conduct services needed. Make it more difficult on us and not on them. Just what I wanted. Another ugly container to store at my house that is will a eye sore. People wake up.
Take your yard waste downtown and dump it on city hall!!!
Yet one more reason to move to the unincorporated parts of the county, or better yet, to neighboring county with a smaller population like Randolph, Stokes, etc.
Why do we pay property taxes, anyone? Say 50-60 years ago, pickup with three times per week, no limit. You provided the waste cans.
Over time reduced to once a week for garbage, bi-weekly for recycle. Meanwhile taxes have expanded exponentially. WE expressly ask for continuation for service that we are paying for in spades. The Council does what it wants, regardless of the citizens. We do NOT have a representative government.
THROW THE BUMS OUT!
I wish we cold throw the bums out. But, it just won’t happen in GSO. This is the council the majority of voters want. Really frustrating.
Yeah, the majority who bothered to show up for the bums election. Some 17,000, if I recall.
The problem is an uninformed and apathetic electorate.
Wonder if the sewers will now be clogged with the leaves? Unclogged sewer lines probably will cost more to unclog, repair and/or replace versus the cost of the city leaf collection.
If the city would stop giving away our tax money to unaccountable programs (ie-cure for violence) and friends if council we should be able to afford programs to all citizens not just select few.
I used to have tons and tons of leaves to deal with, but over the years have eliminated all but 3 hardwood trees – I mower mulch the leaves dropped by those 3 trees + the leaves blown in from neighbors who fail to deal with their leaves. So, elimination of the current loose leaf collection program will NOT affect me.
However, the result will be that many folks will simply do nothing with their leaves, which will build up and clog the drains, thus requiring City work.
Just because Charlotte & Durham don’t have loose leaf collection, is no reason for Greensboro to eliminate it.
I have no experience with biodegradable paper bags, but suspect that they fall apart when they become wet.
MONKEY SEE MOMKEY DO. They have to keep up with Charlotte.
More and more taxes, for less, and less, or shoddy, service.
We must follow Charlotte, Raleigh and Durham if we are to amount to anything. What is the additional cost to citizens?
Raise taxes and cut services. Typical leadership downtown.
“Only” 40% of the citizens use the loose leaf collection service. Other than water, wastewater, and garbage collection, what other city service reaches a higher percentage of benefit? How does the city justify the increase in rates while deleting services? Keep the loose leaf collections.
Great point. There are a lot of things the city pays for that far less than 40% of the residents use.
Will it ever end with the City of Greensboro? Taxes continue to outpace all other communities, wasteful spending by our leaders is completely out of control and services provided the members of our community simply disappear. The Greensboro Police Department no longer enforces the laws of our city, state, and nation. City Departments no longer enforce building codes and ordinances, but we do have a new trash can law! Nobody could put a better playbook together to destroy a once fine city any better than Mayor Vaughan and our City Leaders!
Jim Donaldson
By all means take away one of the few remaining benefits those who actually pay taxes in Greensboro have! Rather than expecting the 40% of us who live in neighborhood with leaves to drag another huge can to the curb, how about sending the Greensboro Transit and Part buses that run constantly across town with only 2-4 passengers to get the leaves! Could sure save a good amount of funds there folks!!
I can see this being a huge burden on homeowners & an even bigger one on the fire department. Congratulations, you’ve all been screwed again by the City’s most powerful HOA.
Well where do I begin. Greensboro has a windfall of money from Covid 19. Giveaways from the federal and or state. Also another windfall from an unfair unprecedented increase in property values for city and county. So therefore our all powerful greedy government rulers decided to help themselves to our hard earned money by unnecessarily taxing all this pile of of unearned wealth by taking all they could get their sticky fingers on Beleive me it has not gone unnoticed. Election cycle will come God willing and we can keep them from being totally corrupted by these present power mad so called representatives. We definitely need an honest trustworthy change before it’s too late.
I’m all for ending loose leaf pickup. People blow leaves out into the street and make some roads hard to navigate and it costs us a fortune for this service. Bag or put your leaves in a can a little at a time and it won’t kill your grass or stop up the drains. Lazy people won’t like this idea but I’m tired of paying for it and having to drive around this mess.
I am guessing you aren’t affected by the leaves every year – either you have few trees are live in a place you aren’t responsible for the removal. I have a lot of mature oak trees (which are great for the environment, by removing CO2 and emitting oxygen). If I put leaves in a can “a little at a time” at one collection per week, it would be six to eight months before all my leaves were picked up. As it is now, my grass is killed every year due to having only two pickups per year. The leaves wouldn’t be in the street so much if the city could manage the collection. They are failures at it because they don’t care. It is zero priority. They promote how “green” our city is (which includes are valuable trees) but then don’t do their part. I agree with a prior post: time to move out. This council is the worst.
More taxes!!! Less services!!! Mandate Mayor and her cabal only spend on Tanger boondoggle advertising and attacking the homeless populations ability to learn live unmolested .
City has money for projects outside the city(boom, Toyota battery, etc) but citizen residents get only large property tax increases and proposed food taxes to prop up the Opera House for the richest residents of our area.
what about . . . lewd leaves ?
Do loose leaves sink ships?
Yea we don’t pay enough taxes in GSO, so dumping the present yard waste plan makes sense. What about the houses that have leaves every year that are chest high the length of their yard? How is one 95 gal can gonna help them. Please let us be JUST like Charlotte, Raleigh and other cities but wait their property taxes are lower than GSO.
Just another reason to clean house in 2025 at the next election.
And just where are these paper bags obtained?
Home Depot/Lowes carry them, about 53 cents per bag
Bags are located at the checkout register at harris teeter lol. Looks like the writing us on the wall this time for the folks in Greensboro since this city council doesn’t care what you think. Folks with yards are going to have to start compost piles in their back yards. Right by the chickens.
Taxes go up services go down
Increased your taxes but still do this.
another reason I don’t want or need the city limits of Greensboro’s to take me in.
Pick up a mulching kit for your mower. It puts the nutrients back in the ground. Direct removal destroys top soil. It’s a waste of tax payer dollars to remove.
Not sure where the confusion is (and I know that I will receive a lot of pushback) but we are NOT ending loose leaf collection.
We will be picking them up weekly along with yard waste instead of every 4-6 weeks only twice a year. Now, the Field Operations staff will be able to attend to what they need to – instead of being pulled for leaf collection season – they will be repairing potholes, picking up litter and other duties that they have had to stop doing.
Oh wow, I’ll sleep well tonight. Tell us another lie.
Marikay – please tell the entire truth. Yes, one pick up of a 95 gallon can. But, for me, by my calculation, that would take six to eight months. OK, add the paper bags and with every rain we have a mess. This needs to go back to the drawing board. You want trees in this town but turn your backs when things get difficult. It is particularly galling to do this after record tax increases. This is NOT a viable solution.
Oye como va.
But,but you have feel good bs like bike lanes!
Can we go back to burning them?! A town and county run by condescending white liberals and professional race-baiters can not thrive!
That’s a solution. We can coordinate a simultaneous burn. If a city official shows up to issue a fine, just claim a passing motorist must have thrown out a lit cigarette.