DENVER — Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) on Monday launched its annual LeafDrop program, encouraging residents to drop off their dead leaves and pumpkins to be turned into compost, instead of sending them to landfills.
Starting Monday through Nov. 30, residents can drop off their leaves at several locations between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. on weekdays, including:
- Cherry Creek Transfer Station, 7301 E. Jewell Ave. (enter on East Jewell Avenue)
- Havana Nursery, 10450 Smith Road (enter on Smith Road)
- Central Platte Campus, 1271 W. Bayaud Ave. (Enter through the gates at Bayaud and Navajo, go past the Denver Animal Shelter to dumpsters in front of Building 2 on the right.)
Cherry Creek Transfer Station is the only site that will accept loose leaves, and any hitched trailers used to transport leaves must be 6 feet or smaller.
Otherwise, all leaves should be bagged in compostable paper bags or emptied from plastic bags on site. Residents can download a coupon to receive a free five-pack of compostable paper leaf bags at participating Ace Hardware stores.
Weekend drop-off locations will be open from Nov. 2 through Nov. 17 on Saturdays and Sundays for residents to leave their post-Halloween pumpkins. These locations include:
- Bruce Randolph High School, East 40th Avenue and Steele Street
- Kennedy High School, Newland Street and Brown Place
- Sloan's Lake Northwest Parking Lot, West Byron Place and Yates Street
- Veterans Park, South Vine Street and East Iowa Avenue
- Cherry Creek Transfer Station
DOTI has also requested that residents refrain from using twine or staples to secure their leaf bags and keep branches and other materials out of the LeafDrop. Anyone who is a current city compost customer can put leaves and pumpkins directly into their green compost cart.
Compost is a beneficial soil amendment used in gardens and landscapes and can be found at most garden and hardware stores.
