BY BTL STAFF
GRAND RAPIDS – Whether you're a Grinch or a Cindy Lou Who, a dried-out Christmas tree can start to wear out its welcome in your home after the holidays.
The city of Grand Rapids, as well as several area communities, have programs to recycle natural Christmas trees. Some offer curbside pickup — but most communities have drop-off services for the decorative pines.
Contact your township hall or city office for more detailed information.
City of Grand Rapids
From Dec. 27 to Feb. 3, Christmas tree drop-off is available to city of Grand Rapids residents at the following locations:
Riverside Park, north entrance, 3151 Monroe Ave. NE
JC Family Park, 2531 Kalamazoo Ave. NE
Lincoln Park, 1120 Bridge St. NW
Huff Park, 2399 Ball Ave. NE
Grand Rapids residents can also dispose of Christmas trees by placing a purple $2.50 city bulk yard waste tag on the tree and placing the tree in the pickup area by 7 a.m. on regular trash pickup days.
Tags can be bought at City Hall at 300 Monroe Ave. NW at the customer service lobby during normal business hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
Trees placed on the curb for pickup must have the tags visible and all decorations or plastic bags on the tree must be removed.
East Grand Rapids
The city of East Grand Rapids' Public Works Department conducts curbside pickup of trees from the Monday of the first full week of January to Friday of the second full week of January.
The tree should be free of any metal decorations or attachments – like tree stands, wire garland or metal wreath bases.
After the two-week collection period, East Grand Rapids residents are asked to save their old Christmas trees in their backyards until the city resumes its seasonal yard waste pickup in April.
Walker
The city of Walker will be collecting Christmas trees from Dec. 26 to Jan. 21 at the following locations:
Walker City Hall, 4243 Remembrance Road NW
Walker Community Park, 650 Cummings Ave. NW
Fire Station No. 3 ,1470 Three Mile Road NW.
Christmas tree recycling is open to Walker residents only. Trees must be clean of decorations, and cannot be placed in a plastic bag.
Wyoming
Wyoming residents can drop off their trees at the Wyoming Public Service Center at 2660 Burlingame Ave. SW.
The center is open during the winter from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, and will also be open for special Saturday hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 31, Jan. 7 and Jan. 14.
