Look here to see when your street is scheduled
COVINGTON, Ky. – “Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree,” wrote English poet Emily Bronte some 200 years ago … but then she didn’t have to rake all those falling leaves. If she had, the “speaking” might have included the words of sailors instead of poets.
Hoping to keep both its streets and verbiage clean, the City of Covington will again help residents deal with the beautiful but labor-intensive mess of autumn created by trees in the public right of way.
With blowers and a giant vacuum, crews from the Public Works Department will start collecting leaves from sidewalks and streets next Monday, following a formal schedule that targets neighborhoods with a lot of trees in the public right of way.
Residents can rake or blow leaves to the curb – not into the street – a day ahead of crews’ arrival. Leaf piles should be placed away from obstructions such as parked vehicles, fire hydrants, mailboxes, water meters, and landscaping. The piles should contain only loose leaves and no other yard waste.
City crews will do the work of piling up the leaves from the sidewalks.
“We really encourage residents to mark this on their calendars and follow this timeline,” said Troy McCain, supervisor of Public Works’ Maintenance Division. “We have a lot of leaves on a lot of streets and limited resources, and this schedule is the most efficient way to collect them so we don’t have to keep returning to an area.”
To find out when Public Works crews will collect leaves on your street, see the department’s leaf collection page
HERE.
- First, expand the interactive map to zoom in on your street, then click the cursor to get the two-day period for your street and the section number in which it falls.
- Second, to see which side of the street is done first, click on the “2020 Leaf Collection Schedule” underneath the map and find the date for your section. (“S/W” stands for “south” and “west,” and “N/E” stands for “north” and “east.”)
Crews will work only one side of the street at a time so residents can park on the other side and avoid getting a ticket. Watch for “No Parking” signs put up 24 hours in advance.
This year, recognizing that on-street parking during the day is heavier because more people are working from home because of the pandemic, the City is ramping up its notification efforts, McCain said. These efforts include mailing residents a notification flyer and putting sandwich-style boards in highly visible areas due to be vacuumed.
“We appreciate the cooperation,” McCain said. “Moving your car can be an inconvenience, but it’s the only way we can keep the streets free of leaves.”
The leaf-collection schedule runs from Monday through Dec. 22, although the City will do spot pickup as needed.
“Our goal is to get every street cleaned up by Christmas,” said McCain, who said leaf collection is an important part of routine maintenance that keeps Covington’s streets clean and storm sewers from getting clogged with debris.
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