ALEXANDRIA – Just in time for spring cleaning, Pope Douglas Solid Waste Management and the Alexandria Rotary Club are offering a Clean-Up Day on Saturday, May 7.

It will take place from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Alexandria Technical and Community College’s truck driving training grounds on North Nokomis Street.

The event is only for household residents of Pope and Douglas counties who want to dispose of furniture, mattresses, appliances and other items (see list below).

The event is a popular one. Between 500 and 1,000 residents participate every year, according to Nathan Reinbold, environmental coordinator with Pope Douglas Solid Waste Management.

Reinbold said this might be the last clean-up event for a while because of the pending construction of the new Pope Douglas Environmental Center, which will break ground in a month and a half.

“The center is being built to accept a lot of the items accepted at community events, like the Rotary event, year-round,” Reinbold said. “Currently, the Pope Douglas Recycling Center is undersized and only accepts certain items.”

Why should residents participate in the Clean-Up Day?

“This is a great civic community-building event that helps raise dollars to do good in the community,” Reinbold said. “The Rotary Club is able to take any and all donations, up and beyond the baseline recycling fees, and input those dollars where they are needed through the Rotary Club’s mission of helping the communities they serve”

The most common items that residents bring in are mattresses, Reinbold said.

”They are recycled with Three Rivers Recycling in western Wisconsin where they are disassembled into their individual components for recycling,” said Reinbold.

Electronics are collected through an agreement with Albany Recycling, a state-certified e-waste recycler. Appliances are accepted by A&A Recycling out of Paynesville, a certified appliance recycler that adheres to stringent environmental requirements.

“Unfortunately, at this time, the couches and recliners that will be accepted will be landfilled,” Reinbold said. “Pope/Douglas is continually looking for partners to develop options to manage items to their highest level – reuse, recycling, etc. We promote the reuse of perfectly good couches, recliners and furniture with the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Alexandria.”

Saturday’s event could use some “helper bees” in the community who can lend a hand in helping to unload cars. Contact Pope Douglas Solid Waste Management for more information at 320-763-9340, 1-800-972-6318 or go to the website, https://popedouglasrecycle.com/contact/

Here’s information about the costs, fees and suggested donations for the items that will be accepted (cash only).

All donations up and beyond the fees will go toward Rotary Club projects and programs that keep the community vibrant and healthy.