SAINT PAUL, MN (April 12, 2024) – Starting April 16, 2024, Saint Paul Public Works will begin its annual spring residential street sweeping operations. City crews will sweep approximately 530 miles of residential streets throughout Saint Paul. Public Works will then sweep more than 2,000 alleys in Saint Paul. Street sweeping operations are expected to take approximately six weeks, weather permitting.
This past winter, the warmer weather and lighter snow totals allowed crews to sweep streets during the winter months, which typically does not occur. The additional sweeping efforts has kept unwanted garbage and debris out of the city’s storm sewers, helping to keep contaminants out of our lakes and rivers and improving water quality for this time of year.
“This unusual winter has allowed our crews to get out of the plow trucks and into sweepers and sweep our streets several times this season,” said Sean Kershaw, Director of Saint Paul Public Works. “With minimal plowing operations this winter, we were able to keep up with potholes and get ahead on spring operations, including sweeping.”
Street sweeping is an important city service that not only removes dirt and garbage from the streets, but also clears additional organic debris such as leaves, dirt, and grass clippings from entering Saint Paul’s storm sewer system. This protects the city’s storm sewer system, and prevents excess debris from polluting our streams, lakes, and rivers.
Saint Paul Public Works reminds businesses and residents how they can help the citywide sweeping efforts:
Move vehicles and follow all posted temporary “No Parking” signs. The city will post temporary “No Parking” signs 24 hours in advance of sweeping operations. Vehicles parked in areas with “No Parking” signs could be ticketed and towed.
Follow all posted overnight “No Parking” signs. Many of the city’s arterial streets, including downtown, have posted signs indicating an overnight timeframe that residents are not allowed to park on the street. This allows sweeping crews to safely do maintenance operations with less traffic on the busy streets. Residents are encouraged to look around their neighborhood for these overnight no parking signs and move their vehicles accordingly.
Do not push any materials, including leaves, grass, or debris into the street. Please properly bag and dispose of any leaves, dirt, and grass clippings. Residents can take materials to Ramsey County compost sites, use their residential yard waste services, or if the resident is part of the Citywide Garbage Service, they can put out compostable yard waste bags with their garbage service to be collected at $3 per bag.
Do not put garbage or recycling carts in the street. Please make sure carts are only placed on the boulevard, not the street.
Adopt A Drain. Residents can help protect our waterways by adopting a storm drain in their neighborhood. By adopting a storm drain (or two), these residents promise to help keep it free of debris in the coming months. Learn more at www.stpaul.gov/adoptadrain.
Saint Paul Public Works sweeps all 530 miles of residential streets twice a year, once in the spring and another in the fall. More than 330 miles of alleys are swept in the spring. Approximately 340 miles of arterial (main) streets are swept at least eight times each year between April and October.
For more information, including a map and schedule about Saint Paul’s street sweeping operations, visit www.stpaul.gov/sweep.