Buff up the Bluff set for April 13

It’s time again for Poplar Bluff residents to start clearing out closets, basements and garages for the annual Buff up the Bluff event.

Citizens will be able to get rid of everything from household items to appliances April 13, during the city-sponsored spring clean up.

“Unfortunately, the closest place to dispose properly and legally of a lot of trash that we accumulate is in Dexter at the landfill, some 30 miles away,” said city planner Matt Winters. “This provides our local citizens an easier opportunity to get rid of some of that stuff that they can’t put in their trash cans for pick up. And they don’t have to pay someone to haul it off at an added expense.”

The city collected 20 construction dumpsters of discarded items through this effort in 2018, Winters said, not including leaves and limbs, tires or scrap metal. The city spends about $15,000 annually on Buff up the Bluff.

The event will be held from 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. at the city leaf disposal site at County Road 604 and South F Street, behind Twin Towers. Signs will be posted directing residents to the site.

Curb-side pickup will be provided April 13 by volunteers. This service is available only to residents 65 and older and there is no charge.

Those who qualify must call between April 8-11 to schedule pickup. No calls will be taken after April 11, according to city officials.

Volunteers from RSVP will take the calls at 573-686-8622 between 9 a.m. and noon, and 1-4 p.m.

Street department workers will be on site during the event to help direct residents.

Ozark Foothills Regional Planning Commission will also be at the event to receive tires. A fee of $3 will be charged for passenger vehicle tires and $7 for larger tires.

The city also offers a monthly bulk curb side trash pick up on the second Tuesday of the month for a fee.

The following items will be accepted at the dump site:

• Bulk metal items. Refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners must have the compressors removed or they will not be accepted.

• Bulky items, including furniture, carpeting and construction materials.

• Limbs and brush. (These will be accepted at the collection site, but cannot be accepted through pick-up service.) No logs or stumps, wire or metal will be accepted in the brush.

• Leaves will be accepted, but cannot contain any plastic bags or foreign material.

The following items will not be accepted:

• Asphalt shingles

• Trash from businesses or construction sites

• Paint