Residential Services
Winter Compost Collection 2024-2025:
Tuesday, December 3rd
Tuesday, December 17th
Tuesday, December 31st
Tuesday, January 14th
Tuesday, January 28th
***Curbside holiday greens and live trees will be collected every week during the month of January***
Tuesday, February 11th
Tuesday, February 25th
Tuesday, March 11th
Tuesday, March 25th
Weekly compost and yard waste collection will resume on Tuesday, April 1st
Village of River Forest Refuse Collection Program
River Forest homes receive weekly refuse (garbage) collection which takes place as described below with options for the base (standard) program and special (unlimited) refuse collection. LRS accepts unlimited quantities of properly containerized and prepared recyclables each week.
LRS, Roy Strom & Village of River Forest
For over 40 years, the River Forest community has received best-in-class refuse services from the Roy Strom Refuse Co. (Strom), family and staff. LRS is privileged to have acquired Strom in December of 2020 . Along with the dedicated Strom staff, now LRS, we’re honored to service River Forest.
LRS was founded on the principle of recycling, reusing and reducing waste. Today, LRS owns and operates state-of the-art recycling facilities throughout the US. LRS offers convenient and affordable sustainable service options as a gold-star domestic recycler. We are proud to keep the materials we collect from your home in America.
LRS is pleased to offer River Forest homes our premier program including more options to be sustainable such as food scrap composting and our home collection recycling services for electronics and household hazardous waste materials.
Click here to learn about the new LRS program from the Village President and click on this link to hear from George Strom, formerly of the Roy Strom Company.
- Back Door Served Homes -Collection of up to two 33-gallon containers of refuse or home building materials
- Alley Served Homes – Collection of LRS, or Strom branded 64-gallon container for refuse.
- Additional containers may not be larger than 33-gallons or 50 lbs. when full with a tight fighting lid
- Additional container (each) requires one (1) Universal Solid Waste Tag
Special Service Option
Special Service Enrollment | Contact the Village of River Forest at 708-366-8500- Unlimited Refuse -Weekly collection of unlimited refuse containers no larger than 33 gallons or 50 pounds when full
- Home Building Debris – Weekly collection of up to one (1) container
Refuse Containers
Refuse containers that are not issued by LRS may not exceed 33-gallons or 50 pounds when full. Containers are required to have tight-fitting lids with materials contained inside. Do not overfill containers or carts. Oversized and overweight containers will not be collected.Any item placed outside of your refuse containers require a Universal Solid Waste Tag affixed to it. Bulk items are collected on the same day as refuse. Bulk Item Universal Solid Waste Tags required as with following examples:
MATTRESS / BOX SPRING
taped securely shut. Plastic mattress covers may be purchased at
retail outlets such as Walmart, Lowes, Menards, Home Depot and storage
unit facilities.
Under 50 lbs. & not to exceed 4’ Length x 4’ Wide = 1 Tag
- Small sized furniture object
- Vacuum cleaner
- Child’s toy
- Tools
- Bag or box of items
Over 50 lbs., Under 150 lbs. = 5 Tags
- Hot water heaters under 75 gallons
- Furniture items
- Appliances
Over 150 pounds = 10 Tags
- Hot water tanks over 75 gallons
- Furniture items
- Appliances
Universal Solid Waste Tags are $3.39 each and sold at the following locations:
- River Forest Village Hall – 400 Park Avenue
- Jewel-Osco – 7523 Lake Street
- Schauer Ace Hardware – 7449 Madison, Forest Park
LRS will collect an unlimited quantity of recyclable materials. For back door served residences, recyclables must be placed in containers 33-gallons or under, or in small cardboard boxes or thick paper bags. Residences with alley service can place recyclables in the LRS-provided 64-gallon recycling cart. Containers should be closed to avoid wind-blow debris.
Accepted Recyclables
- Household plastic, rigid plastic, plastic jugs and bottles
- Aluminum cans, steel & tin cans, glass
- Paperboard, office paper & junk mail, newspaper, phone books, magazines & catalogs
- Milk & juice cartons
- Cardboard & paper bags
New Year’s Day | Memorial Day | 4th of July |Labor Day | Thanksgiving | Christmas Day
Service will be delayed by one day if holiday is on or before your regular pick-up day.
Properly prepared yard waste and brush are collected every Tuesday beginning the first Tuesday of April through the first Tuesday in December. Service is for yard waste such as grass, leaves, shrubbery cuttings, and bundles of brush/branches.
- Yard waste may be set out after 6:00pm the night before collection (Monday)
- Yard waste must be placed out no later than 7:00am on collection day (Tuesday)
- Yard waste will be collected in the parkway immediately behind the curb and not placed in the street
Yard Waste Fee | Universal Solid Waste Tag Required (Each)
- BAG | One (1) Kraft-style landscape paper bag under 32-33 gallons and 50 lbs.
- BUNDLE | One (1) brush bundle must be under 50 lbs, with individual limbs not to exceed 4 feet long by 4 inches in diameter, preferably tied with twine
Holiday Trees & Greens
LRS will collect HOLIDAY GREENS (ONLY) every Tuesday in January. Please have out by 7AM. This is only for Christmas trees, wreaths, and garland, only holiday greens. LRS does not collect yard waste during this time.
The Village program offers collection of compostable food scraps and yard waste with an LRS (Strom) Compost Cart every Tuesday and bi-monthly December through March. As a founding partner of the Illinois Food Scrap Coalition, LRS, along with the Village of River Forest, strongly encourage composting as a sustainable way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Examples of accepted compostables include: egg shells, pastas, nuts, paper plates, napkins, fruit, vegetables, rice, grain, bread, coffee grounds, filters and more.
Click here to learn about the Compost Cart Program!
The program is offered on an optional subscription basis. The subscription price varies based on cart size, and the program auto-renews until cancelled. Residents who sign up will receive a cart, along with an under-sink collection bucket. If you use four or more tags per month for yard waste, this might be a better option for you. Compost Carts are delivered monthly. Residents who sign-up before the 20th of the month will receive their compost container by the first of the following month. Compost collection begins when you receive your Compost Cart. Service is provided every Tuesday and bi-monthly December through March.
Compost Carts are now available in three sizes: 35-gallon, 65-gallon and 95-gallon . Please visit the Village of River Forest webpage at https://www.vrf.us/curbside-composting to request your compost cart, to make changes, or enroll for service.
- Refuse collection is provided on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
- Yard waste and Compost Carts are serviced on Tuesday, in season.
- Missed locations and special pick-ups are done on Thursday and Friday.
Monday | West side of Harlem Ave through and including both sides of Monroe Ave between Central Ave and North Ave, and the east side of Jackson Ave between Oak Ave and Chicago Ave
Tuesday | Both sides of Jackson Ave (except for the east side of Jackson Ave between Oak Ave and Chicago Ave) through and including both sides of Park Ave between Central Ave and North Ave, and the west side of Park Ave through and including the east side of Thatcher Ave between Division St and North Ave.
Wednesday | Both sides of Forest Ave through and including the west side of River Oaks Dr. between Central Ave and Division St, and the west side of Lathrop Ave through and including the west side of Thatcher Ave between Madison St and Hawthorne Ave.
Accessible & Unimpeded Path Required for Service
Please have all materials placed out in an accessible location, with clear paths both salted and shoveled in winter months, for collection crews to safely access and move containers and bulk items. Collection crews may determine if a path is unsafe to service if obstructed or impassable, which may result in a service delay.
BACK DOOR & TOP-OF-DRIVE SERVICE COLLECTION Refuse is collected near the back door or behind the front building line of your home, on the driveway side of your property. Recyclables are collected from the top-of-driveway. Compost Carts issued by LRS (Strom) & Yard Waste bags are collected from the curb near the parkway, not in the street.
ALLEY SERVICE COLLECTION Refuse, recycling, yard waste and compost are collected from the edge of the alley
The Village program offers collection for electronic waste (E-Waste) items beginning in the summer of 2022. E-Waste collection is offered twice per year for no additional charge. Items accepted are shown below and include electronics banned from Illinois landfills that require special handling. E-waste is collected by a designated LRS crew on regular pick-up day during the collection week.
Click here to learn how the Electronic Waste Program Works!
LRS will collect up to seven (7) accepted items total, with no more than two (2) TV’s or computer monitors per collection, per household. A pick-up request is required by the cut-off date. Requests for an E-Waste pick-up are to be submitted online.
Here’s how it works:
- Click on the Electronic Waste Pick-Up link in the upper right side of this webpage.
- Once you have filled in your address information and selected the items you have for collection, click submit and a submission confirmation will appear
- Materials must be placed in the front of your home at the curb near the parkway no later than 7AM on the day of collection.
- Collection does not take place in the alley due to the nature of the materials.
- Items are collected on your regular pick up day the week of collection.
- Small electronic items may be placed at the curb in a brown paper bag or a small cardboard box.
- Mark the box or bag with marker as E-Waste so the crew can easily see it.
ACCEPTED ELECTRONIC ITEMS:
CELL PHONES DIGITAL CONVERTER BOX SATELLITE RECEIVER
COMPUTERS DIGITAL MUSIC PLAYER (MP3 PLAYER) SMALL SERVER
COMPUTER MOUSE DVD PLAYER TV
COMPUTER KEYBOARD DVD RECORDER VCR’s
COMPUTER MONITOR FAX MACHINE VIDEO GAME CONSOLE
HOME PRINTER
2024 Electronic Waste Service Dates
March 17th-19th
September 15th-17th
2025 HHW collection will take place in June and October
The Village program offers collection for household hazardous waste materials beginning in the summer of 2022. Twice each year, River Forest residents will have the opportunity to properly recycle and dispose of unwanted hazardous waste materials. There is no additional charge for this service as it is now part of the refuse collection program.
LRS partners with a renowned hazardous waste service provider to collect up to 70 pounds of hazardous materials from the front of your home for each collection. Many of the materials collected are recycled, with proper disposal for any of the remaining materials. A pick-up request is required by the cut-off date shown below. Collection is handled with an onboard chemist that will properly sort, pack and transport the items as required by state and federal law.
Click here to learn how the Household Hazardous Waste Collection works!
Submitting a request is done online and takes only a few minutes to submit. Here’s how the process works:
- Click on the Hazardous Waste Pick-Up link in the upper right side of the webpage.
- Once you have filled in your address information and selected the items you have for collection, click submit and a submission confirmation will appear.
- You will receive a kit in the mail to place the materials in. If for some reason, the kit does not arrive before your scheduled collection, LRS can provide simple instructions on how to place the materials out safely for collection.
- Materials must be placed in the front of your home near the front door for safety reasons no later than 7AM on the day of collection.
- If you do not have a front door facing the parkway, please include a note when you submit your request as to where the materials will be placed.
- Collection does not take place in the alley due to the nature of the materials.
ACCEPTED HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE
- AEROSOLS
- AUTO CHEMICALS
- CHROMIUM PAINTS
- CORROSIVE ACIDS
- CORROSIVE BASE
- DRIVEWAY SEALER
- FERTILIZER INSECTICIDE BUG SPRAY
- FLAMMABLE OILS
- FLAMMABLE SOLVENTS
- FLUORESCENT BULBS
- GASOLINE/DIESEL
- HAIRSPRAY/AIR FRESHENER OIL
- HID BULB
- HOUSEHOLD CLEANERS
- LEAD
- LEAD-ACID BATTERY
- LITHIUM BATTERY
- MERCURY ARTICLES
- NICAD BATTERY
- NON-PCB BALLAST
- OIL-BASED PAINT/STAIN
- OVEN CLEANER
- PCB BALLAST WD-40
- POISON/ WEED KILLER
- POOL CHEMICALS
- RESINS, GLUES,
- SHELLAC/VARNISH
- SPRAY ADHESIVES
- SPRAY PAINT ENAMEL
- SUMP PUMP BATTERY
- URETHANE
- USED OIL FILTER