Blue cart meetings set

The city Department of Streets and Sanitation will hold a series of community meetings about the next phase of its blue cart recycling program, which will soon start in areas south of Montrose Avenue and west of Cicero Avenue.

Plans call for blue carts to be dropped off starting Monday, July 29, in front of homes in the affected areas, which include parts of the 38th and 45th wards, and the first recycling pick-up will occur about 2 weeks later. Other Northwest Side areas, including Jefferson Park and Edgebrook, will receive their blue carts in the fall, while neighborhoods east of Cicero already have their carts.

Community meetings have been scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 22, at the Dunning Library, 7455 W. Cornelia Ave., and 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 29, at the Portage-Cragin Library, 5108 W. Belmont Ave.

All residents who live in single-family homes and two-, three- and four-flat buildings will receive blue cart service. The city will mail residents a postcard notifying them when service will start, and recycling pick-ups will be made every other week.

Recyclable containers do not have to be rinsed before being placed in a blue cart, and grass clippings should be placed in a tightly sealed bag next to the cart, according to the department. Residents who do not want to participate in the blue cart program can asked to have their cart removed.

For more information, visit www.chicagorecycles.org.