Leaf & Yard Waste Pick Up

For residential refuse customers

leavesBagged yard waste is collected curbside on the same day as your regular garbage pick up. Yard waste bags must have yard waste stickers (available for $2 each) attached as payment for pick up except during free pick up periods (see below).

Stickers may be purchased in person at City Hall or the Public Works building. To have stickers sent to you in the mail (minimum of 10) you can call 952-939-1382 and the cost will be placed on your utility bill.

2011 FREE Yard Waste Pick Up Dates

The City will be picking up leaf and yard waste free of charge for a limited time this fall. Locate your neighborhood below to plan for your free pick up. Remember, compostable bags must be used for curbside pick up.

Bellgrove, Hobby Acres, Park Ridge, and Interlachen Park Residents

The City provides free street leaf and yard waste pick up in your area using front-end loaders and dump trucks. Pick up in these areas will be November 7–10. Refer to the schedule below for your neighborhood’s pick up day.

  • Bellgrove: Monday, November 7
  • Interlachen Park: Tuesday, November 8 (Meadowbrook Rd up to and including Interlachen Rd)
  • Park Ridge: Wednesday, November 9
  • Hobby Acres: Wednesday, November 9
  • Interlachen Park: Thursday, November 10 (Interlachen Rd to Blake Rd)

Place leaves in loose piles (unbagged) in the street along the curb line. Leaves should be placed on the street no later than 7:00 am on your scheduled pick up day and no earlier than the day before your scheduled pick up day. There will not be free bagged yard waste pick up in these neighborhoods. Collection of bags with stickers will resume November 14–17 (weather permitting).

5th Ave N, County Roads 73 and 5, and Blake Road Residents

Due to county restrictions and high traffic levels, residents will have free leaf and yard waste bag pick up October 31*–November 17.

All Other City Service Area Residents

Free fall leaf/yard waste bag pick-up will be October 31*–November 17.

Note: Bags of leaf and yard waste in all City service areas are collected on the same day as regular refuse. The last week of curbside yard waste bag pick up will be November 14–17.

*This date was incorrectly printed in the October Hopkins Highlights as November 1. There WILL be free pick-up on Monday, October 31 as well.

Yard waste pick up guidelines

  • Yard waste is defined as leaves with twig stems no longer than 4 inches, grass clippings and similar garden waste.
  • Yard waste must be bagged. Maximum size bag is 55-gallon, weighing no more than 40 lbs. Yard Waste must be bagged in a compostable bag—either paper bags or compostable plastic bags.
  • Place yard waste at the normal refuse collection site at least 4 feet away from your refuse & recycling containers.
  • Items NOT accepted include: animal feces (please clean up after pets before raking your lawn), branches, vines, long twigs, sod waste and shrub clippings.
  • NO garden products such as melons, pumpkins, squash, potatoes, apples, and tomatoes, should be placed in yard waste bags. Place unused garden products such as these into your regular garbage container.
  • Every bag to be picked up must have a yard waste sticker affixed to it, facing the street or alley so it's visible to drivers. (During the free yard waste pick up dates, no sticker is needed.)

Contacts

  • Solid Waste Coordinator

    952-548-6351
  • To order yard waste stickers, call:
    Public Works Secretary

    952-939-1382

Drop off site

Hopkins refuse customers can also drop off their brush and yard waste for free at the drop off site, open May through November.

Did you know?

The easiest and best way to handle grass clippings is to leave them on the lawn. Set your mower to a height of two to three inches. Mow frequently enough so that no more than one-third of the grass blade is removed at any mowing. This may mean that you will mow more frequently, but you will spend less time doing it. Not only will you save time mowing and bagging and save money by not buying yard waste bags and having them picked up, you will also have healthier grass.