As flowers, trees and other plant life begins to flourish with the new season, now is as good a time as any for Dowagiac residents to take stock of the unwanted items cluttering their homes — be that set of old big wheels their child has long outgrown or that wooden barstool that has seen far better days.

The City of Dowagiac is again offering its annual Spring Cleanup pickup service, which will run later this month from April 20-24. As in past years, disposal crews will be picking up items placed curbside outside of residences within city limits.

“Whatever items people place out there will be taken to the landfill,” said Sue Watson, administrative assistant with the city. “It’s a great way for residents to get rid of the kind of stuff that garbage collectors won’t take during regular pickup.”

Crews will travel from home to home picking up curbside refuge, making their way throughout the entire city during the week.

In order to be eligible for pickup, the items must fall within these guidelines:

1. Refuse must be neatly placed curbside in an orderly fashion.

2. No refrigerators, freezers, or air conditioners will be accepted; unless certification sticker is placed on item indicating that the freon has been removed.

3. No household garbage will be accepted.

4. No individual item over 5’ long, 3’ wide, or 3’ high, weighing over 100 lbs will be accepted.

5. No automotive/marine batteries will be accepted.

6. No tires or rims will be accepted.

7. No materials that are prohibited from disposal in TYPE II landfills (paints, solvents, oils, etc.) will be accepted. (Note: Paint cans that are open and contain

only DRY paint will be accepted.)

8. No propane cylinders will be accepted.

9. All construction/demolition material must be less than one cubic yard in total volume for curbside pickup.

10. No lawnmowers or small engines will be accepted unless the gasoline has been completely drained.

11. Total curbside volume shall not exceed 3 cubic yards.

12. Windows, glass, and mirrors must be less than 3’ x 4’ in size.

Handling the cleanup efforts will be crews with Republic Services out of Kalamazoo, who handled the project two years ago, Watson said.

“They’ve done cleanup in Dowagiac many, many times,” she said. “They’re familiar with the routes and procedures. Hopefully, everything will run smoothly this year.”

On average, crews have collected almost 63 tons of waste from local homes during the weeklong cleanup effort, Watson said.

“[Waste] can include furniture, appliance, regular household debris,” Waston said. “It can be stuff people want to get rid of, like broken chairs or old appliances that aren’t working any longer.”

Residents placing items up for cleanup can do so no sooner than Saturday, April 18. All debris must be curbside by 6 a.m. on April 20.

Residents who would rather recycle their old electronics rather than send them to a landfill will be able to do so during an event held by Green Earth Electronics Recycling from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. on April 30 at the city parking lot located at the northwest corner of Main Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

Crews will be collecting computers, laptops, monitors, TVs, telephones, cameras, DVD players, cords/cables, printers, toner cartridges, cell phones, refrigerators, air conditioners, appliances, and any other electronic items or items with a cord.