Update from 12.18.18

The last day to rake leaves to the curb is Sunday, December 30. 

This has been a heavy collection year, and we know some of our residents have been waiting awhile for leaf crews to return to their neighborhood. We apologize for any inconvenience it may cause our residents, but we’re doing everything we can to work through the leaf piles.

We’ve spoken with MSD, and there is no concern about clogged sewers at this point related to Ballwin's Curbside Leaf Collection. However, they would like to remind residents not to rake leaves directly into the sewers. Leaves are a normal part of clean up this time of year, and they haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary other than the fact that leaves are falling later than usual.

Please remember it is very important residents do not rake their leaves into the streets but instead leave them on the edge of their yard. Leaves in the streets can cause a number of issues, and we rely on our residents to do their part.

We should emphasize, this is not designed to be a weekly pickup service, but it has been a heavy and very wet fall which slows things down considerably. And this year we were hit with a few early winter weather events which requires us to stop leaf collection and switch all of our equipment over to handle the snow. Many people don’t realize we use the same trucks and equipment for everything, so it’s not just a matter of turning on the snow plow. It takes a while to take all the leaf equipment off and put all the snow equipment on and vice versa. Utilizing the same trucks saves Ballwin tax payers a significant amount of money from having to purchase more equipment.

It should also be said, Ballwin is getting older. Every year the trees in this city become more mature, with larger and more leaves, so it’s not the same process it was 20 or 30 years ago.

All in all, we know some of our residents are frustrated. And Ballwin takes that seriously. We’re truly doing everything we can to speed up progress. Overtime has been approved for Saturdays in the month of December, which will continue. Extra help from the parks department employees has been solicited, and every person in the public works department who can be on the streets collecting leaves including our fleet mechanics, sign specialist, and tree trimming crews is doing just that. We hear our residents’ concerns, and we’re working diligently to get through the city.

The last day to rake leaves to the curb is Sunday, December 30. Crews will begin collecting first thing Monday morning and once they pass your home at that point, they won’t be back until next fall. So we’re encouraging our residents to complete their raking in the next two weeks. OF course, this is all weather permitting. If snow or adverse winter weather moves into the area, we may suspend the program at any time.

More about leaf collection