The Niles Street Department will begin this year’s annual leaf collection program on Nov. 2.

Last year the program started in the first ward therefore this year the program will begin with the second ward. Three crews will be in different areas as they work their way through each ward. Leaves are collected one ward at a time and the starting ward is rotated each year.

Residents are asked to assist the street department crews by following these few simple rules:

• Rake leaves to the edge of the street and not onto the pavement. Leaves raked into the street can cause flooding problems, create a safety hazard, cause leaves to end up next door or down the street in front of a neighbors house, and hamper snow removal operations (if Niles experiences an early snowfall).

• Leaves mixed with brush, limbs, trash, ashes or other debris will not be picked up;

• Leaves must be raked out in advance of the leaf vacuums. Crews will not return to pick up leaves that are not raked out in time.

• People should move vehicles to off-street locations when the crews are in their neighborhood, both for your benefit and their neighbor’s. Cars parked in the street slow the collection process down significantly and force the crews to leave piles of leaves behind that cannot be reached with the equipment.

• Do not cover the water meter castings in the boulevard area. This prevents meter readers from taking actual readings and requires them to estimate your water usage.

Crews will go around the city at least two complete times, weather permitting. But residents shouldn’t take any chances. Rake out as many leaves as possible in advance of the first pickup since the second time may be halted or delayed by bad weather. Normally the crews work ten hours per day, Monday through Saturday. The goal is to complete the entire program prior to Dec. 15.

If early winter weather completely shuts down the collection program and the city is unable to resume it once the weather improves, we would likely schedule a spring leaf collection program. If that were to be the case an announcement in the local newspapers will be released. People should assume there will be no spring program unless there is an official announcement from the Department of Public Works stating otherwise.

Should residents not be able to rake leaves out in time to be picked up or if they prefer to not have the city pick them up, they can be taken to the Southeast Berrien County Landfill, 1540 Mayflower Road, Buchanan, and disposed of in a convenient, easily accessible location.