City of Hays
The City of Hays Public Works Department has scheduled its 2026 Annual Fall Cleanup to begin on Monday, October 19.
The citywide collection initiative provides residential refuse customers with the opportunity to dispose of C&D, excess municipal waste, scrap metal, and tree branches.
To preserve neighborhood aesthetics, maintain road accessibility, and prevent environmental hazards, officials request that residents refrain from placing discard items in alleys or at curbsides prior to Friday, Oct. 16.
Setting materials out early can obstruct utility easements, impede emergency vehicle access, and cause debris to scatter across roadways during high-wind events.
To optimize routing schedules and improve operational efficiency at municipal handling facilities, two key policy modifications have been enacted for this year’s program: a total 10-minute collection limit per residence and refined size parameters for tree limbs.
Under the updated guidelines, all discarded tree branches and limbs must measure no larger than six inches in diameter and no longer than six feet in length.
Furthermore, collection crews will observe a strict maximum loading window of 10 combined minutes per household.
“Our solid waste crews work diligently to provide this service across the entire community each fall,” said Joe Billinger, solid waste superintendent. “Implementing a 10-minute maximum collection window per residence ensures our routes stay on schedule and keeps the cleanup equitable for all neighborhoods. We ask that residents help our teams by trimming branches to the 6-foot length and 6-inch diameter maximums, and by organizing materials into clearly separated piles before collection begins.”
He also emphasized that compostable yard waste remains strictly excluded from the cleanup program for the second consecutive year.
The organic branch collection is designated solely for tree branches, bush trimmings, and bamboo.
Compostable organic materials, including leaves, garden vegetation, weeds, grass clippings, and spent agricultural plants such as sunflowers, will not be collected by cleanup crews.
Residents must dispose of these materials independently through the City of Hays Yard Waste Tag Program or by delivering them directly to the City of Hays Compost Site, located South of E. 13th on General Custer Road, which is available to residents of charge year-round.
“We want to make it very clear to everyone preparing their properties that yard waste cannot go into the cleanup piles,” Billinger said. “Items like sunflowers, loose leaves and other non-woody materials are not accepted at the Elis County tree site for burning. If a pile contains compostable yard waste mixed in with branches, crews will have to pass it by. We encourage residents to take full advantage of our municipal compost facility for those organic garden and lawn materials.”
Residents participating in the cleanup must separate acceptable discard items into four distinct piles positioned at their standard collection location (alley or curbside):
*Any exceptionally large items, such as hot tubs and swing sets, should be cut into manageable pieces in order to be picked up.
Hazardous waste items, including liquid paints, chemical solvents, automotive fluids, batteries, compressed gas cylinders, tires, and contractor-generated demolition materials, will not be collected.
Standard household trash and regular blue-bag recycling collection will continue their usual schedules throughout the cleanup.
Because municipal crews complete only one continuous pass through each neighborhood route, residents must ensure all materials are properly separated and staged by 7:00 a.m. on Monday, October 19.
Materials placed out after crews have serviced a street or alley will not be collected. For comprehensive guidelines, residents may visit the official City of Hays webpage or contact the Solid Waste Division directly at (785) 628-7350.